Marvelous Wasteland
by CaptainRhiRhi
Summary: Based Around X-Men: First Class Ginger was a girl of many dreams, none featuring a Telepath and her Death at such a young age. A girl with no hope had to become Hope for others. A girl of many Talents, had to find the right Talent to save the world. A girl who loves everyone, had to find a reason to not love the enemy. A girl so fragile, had to become the ultimate Weapon.
1. Chapter 1

It was an extraordinarily warm night on planet Earth that night; however, this was no different to every other night so the inhabitants found the extraordinary heat to be just another burden on this wasteland. No one was able to tell the difference between temperatures anymore, it was just common knowledge that whatever temperature it was: it would be hot. Too hot for humans, but of course planet Earth hasn't been inhabited by humans for over 20 years now. Instead a new breed of human roams the earth, the children of the atom, the mutants.

Through the starless night a flash of ginger crossed the ruins, soon followed by three figures. The bright-haired girl tried to jump over a pit but sadly failed. Her landing was uncomfortable and damaged her leg slightly, the consequence being that now she was an even easier target to her predators.

She stifled her cries of pain as she ran down the rocky path, filling her body with doubt that she would escape. She soon heard yells calling for her to stop and one in particular seemed to be louder. She wished it was just the volume of his voice, but both brain and heart told her it was because he was in a much closer proximity to her then the other two mutants. This fact was then confirmed when a hand that matched the bright orange shade of the girl's hair wrapped tightly around her neck and pushed her to the ground. On instinct her own pale hands wrapped around the predators oddly coloured wrist and tried to pry it off her neck.

This did nothing but make the Mutant more persistent and as a consequence the creature now had two hands wrapped around the girl's neck. The abnormal strength of this man seemed impossible, after analysing the dangerous situation she came up to Plan H. With her petite fingers wrapped around the mutant's wrist, the deep orange suddenly faded to a pink shade, the strength and weight of the man seeming to lighten slightly.

With her remaining strength she pushed the now human-resembling creature off her body and set off once again. She wasn't fast anymore and her running seemed to have slowed into speed walking, she was quickly losing stamina and could still hear the creature's moving ever closer. She passed a few alleyways, examining each one for a secure hiding place, but none fit the bill. Her breathing was heavy and her mouth became dry and parched, the 5th Alleyway she stopped at was her last, another arm -similar to the shade of the girls skin - pulled her into the shadows.

This hand moved over the girl's mouth and covered her lips as to silence the scream about to be formed. The other hand moved to form a gun like position which was then pressed against his own forehead. The other two Chasers finally caught up with the girl and entered the damp alleyway. They were both dressed in black leather which hid away any multi-coloured skin on their abnormal bodies, their eyes were the only revealed parts and even those weren't an ordinary colour, shining a glistening yellow and no matter how alluring those eye's seemed, Ginger knew the mutants were deadly.

Their faces moved closer as they began staring at the two yet not seeing them. The mutants looked at each other, shrugging their shoulders and running out of the Alley way. Once the predators weren't visible, the ginger female began thrashing around which caused her breath to quicken at an uneven pace as she became heightened with rage.

An unknown voice began to sound in her head, a British accent repeating the words 'calm your mind'. In an instant she felt all stiffened body parts relaxing. "I'm sorry about that," the same British voice whispered. She quickly turns with her knuckles raised, she scanned over his visible features, and some were hidden in the Shadows which brought up a tiny amount of distrust. He had scruffy brown hair, in fact his whole body was un-organised, and clothing was torn in places while mud seemed to decorate as well a red tint in some spots.

"Who are you?" She questioned bravely.

"My name is Charles Xavier, and I must say, you have a very groovy ability there!" His smile was kind and held nothing but sincerity. The female finally realized how he wasn't a threat and moved her fists back against her sides although they were still clenched, just in case. She questioned her actions but soon forgot when the hand of Charles was delicately placed on her own palm and made the held together hand become unclenched. He nodded his head to the right and she instantly understood the meaning, almost like the Charles had sent a telepathic message in to her mind. He knew a place to hide.

In normal circumstances she would have kicked him in the jewels and then ran away to find her own place of protection. However, she already felt trust sparking between the two and allowed that spark to control her better judgement. "My name is Ginger." She spoke over the pitter-patter of their footsteps.

"I know," was his simple reply before adding "matches your hair." His smile was huge when she began to do a sarcastic clap, applauding him on the not-so-new discovery. They finally arrived at a rotting building, cracks decorated the walls and the only thing colourful on the outside was the patches of moss growing in numbers.

The inside was completely different, patterned cloths draped over the damp wallpaper in order to brighten up the grey palace, candles were placed around the room giving of light and different scents that once mixed; created an aroma that would make you melt.

"Eric! Raven!" Charles called, his voice replacing the chilling silence which echoed across the ten story building. A girl called back and Charles left the room to climb some metal stairs, his disarrayed leather boots causing another echo to be released.

He found the only room which seemed to have a shadow of light peeking through the cracks of the door and entered, the first noticeable application in the room being the giant pan that seemed to bubble bits of meat and vegetables swimming around the murky slop. Then a blue creature dipped a large spoon into said stew, concentrating on not allowing any part of the mush to burn.

"Erik's cleaning up the mess he made earlier," Raven began, her spoon being pulled out and flying as she soon began to rant about how Erik still didn't understand the danger they are in and the way he acts is continuously putting the team at risk.

Charles had no time for her problems, not with Ginger walking downstairs. Not with the key to reviving the human race roaming their hallways, about to interrupt her, he himself was put to a halt at the sound of a crash coming from the floor beneath them.

Alarms sounded in both of their minds. They had practised the routine of walking around the building cautiously with weapons aimed a lot, and so the plan was set into motion as they walked down the staircase, again they spotted the only room ablaze with a light source, the door was set wide open and was causing a beam of light to escape the room, Charles and Raven gave each other a knowing look before charging into the room.

They first noticed a man wearing a maroon sweater accompanied by a strong chin stood with his arms raised; metal poles that were once twisted to form a bed were now slowly gripping a petite girl's body. "Ginger!" Charles called frantically; he stumbled towards the body and began to pull her body away from the uniquely curved bars while managing to form curiosity between both uninformed mutants standing behind them.

After revitalising the strangled victim Charles finally began to explain why he had brought in the female. Raven began to complain about the kinds of troubles this would cause, about how she could secretly be working with Shaw or be part of another Mutant Cult looking for Sacrifices. As Ginger stared at the arguing gang of Mutants - she was hit with a revelation, her heart beginning to soar and the beats quickening, she was in the kitchen a few centimetres way from the whispering gang. "You're the X-Men!" Her mouth formed an 'O' shape as realisation hit her full throttle. She felt her heart skip a single beat before resuming the uncommon speed as she stared at the three heroes, as broken as they all looked, they still stood tall with a glimmer of hope sparkling in there pupils.

"Really Charles" Eric whispered to his old friend. Only Charles would bring in such a crazy, he found her curiosity annoying and the fact neither he nor Charles know any background information about her was just an unusual thing for Charles to do, although he trusted Charles, there is still the possibility that he had been overcome by a spell this Mutant had placed upon him, he had heard of such mutations before. Charles shrugged in reply to Eric's remark and then sent a questioning glance towards Ginger in hope she was smart enough to understand he wanted further explanation.

"_The_ X-Men?" Her voice was raised slightly in shock, "you're basically a legend in the resistance! You're the group of people we all think of before fighting against Shaw and his minions!" She had no intent for the volume of her voice to be raised to a point that it sounded like she was scalding the two men.

Raven had left to prepare the now possibly burned slop, returning with 4 bowls of a dark brown mixture, brightened only slightly by the carrots and peas. Though no matter how disgusting the stew would taste, they were thankful to hold any sort of mixture able to assist there starved stomachs.

"Tell me," Ginger called over the slurps of hungry soldiers, "what happened to the other three?"

A look was shared around the room, leaving Ginger to feel slightly left out. "When we were unable to stop Shaw and the humans were wiped, the nuclear war had a bigger effect on the others, for Hank, this caused his mutation to grow inside of him." Raven paused as memories of her lost friend made a pang of pain appear in her core. "The beast got out of bounds and so Hank left. We haven't seen him since."

"We lost Alex to a pack of Mutants a couple blocks away from here," Charles said slowly, looking downward at the mix of food.

"What about Banshee?" Ginger asked, referring to the wailing human that seemed to be missing in action.

"He was with Alex at the time, he felt bad for not being able to fight. Sadly, he ended up wondering off in hope to gain some extra power." Eric pronounced, seemingly being the only one not caring about the deaths, she nodded her head and went back to the bland mix of ingredients while wishing she had kept her mouth shut, because, as she looked at their faces, she could feel her own heart tear a little.


	2. Chapter 2

A flash of sun was released into the room when a current of wind pushed the black cloth aside, allowing more wind to attack the room and send a chill to rush over Gingers lying body. She groaned at the awakening, her dreams of a beautiful world becoming unrealistic as she stared at the cloudless sky. With an intake of breath she pushed her sore, dirty body off the stone ground.

Still slightly tired as she walked uneven steps, tripping over her own feet while attempting to pass each crumbling wall and hike up the fatal staircase.

"Erik, just listen," Charles sighed at the man who towered over him "that girl has an amazing ability, an ability we need if we ever want to defeat Shaw." He tried to reason with the corrupted German, this certainly got Erik's attention.

Shaw was an old enemy and yet in some ways a companion, Shaw was the one to unlock Eric's ability, and secretly Eric was more than grateful. But, Shaw made the mistake of killing the young soldiers parental figure, he killed Eric's mother and for doing such a spiteful thing, Eric was desperate to intake the salty taste of revenge.

"I understand what she is capable of and what the conclusion to your plan could be," his voice boomed slightly, which managed to bring the attention of the brightly coloured girl, her figure sneakily passed against the metal seal that separated both rooms. "However I don't think her limits will allow her to change a whole planet human." He argued, forcing his point across. Charles being Charles would not allow his faith to be harmed though, or at least he tried hiding the fact- even from himself- that Shaw had already won and there was nothing to stop him.

Ginger listened intently as they continuously argued, 2 old friends arguing over the fate of the world, for some reason, she found this idea hilarious. She, herself was unsure about the rise of the Human Race, all she wanted was peace, for the Mutants to become civilised in ways, for the fighting to end and order to begin. Did they really need the return of Humans for a dream, tranquillity, to become true? Surely as the Human Race once again became the enemy, the outcasts.

"You can go in there you know?" Raven started at the messy girl, only then did Ginger realise the metal door had been opened, though the two men were still consulting each other on the red head's limits, she rolled off the wall and into the room while halting there conversation.

She planned the following sentence in her head, trying to keep both Men's hope of winning this war, "this is a great plan and could be possible, but, Eric is right about my limits. It takes enough out of me to change one Mutant Human, let alone a whole planet of Mutants." She saw the glum face appear on Charles face and felt her heart break.

"Yes, I suppose your right." He smoothed the crinkles on his shirt and left to reside in his chambers.

Guilt swept over the girl's body, a regretful flavour filled her mouth. She used her little knowledge of the building to find Charles room, so far she had entered a bathroom and some sort of investigation room, and she gave little notice to the dotted marks on a map of the World, the large collection of images of Mutants, including the newly added picture of her. A couple more minutes and she came across a luxurious looking room, it had wooden walls with a large bed in the middle, only 2 candles lit up the room, in the dim light everything looked Victorian.

"Charles?" Ginger called, jumping when she was the figure that loomed on the edge of the bed, head in his hands.

"Yes, Ginger." He spoke in a calm voice. His British accent hitting Ginger, why had she only just realised the familiar wavering in the man's voice.

Walking to his side she took a seat beside him, her body sinking into the soft mattress, "you never let me finish my sentence's" His hand snapped to the girl's, only then did she notice the closeness of their bodies. "I do like your plan and if we could find some way to boost my ability, then we could make it possible." Her tone was filled with positivity, managing to form a blast of hope to curse Charles body. Although, inside she had a strong feeling of doubt, she hid it well, the disguise she had built over the years becoming more and more helpful with each day.

They sat in silence, there arms touching and radiating a warmth between the two bodies. While Gingers thoughts were centred about the consequences of her lying. Suddenly Charles stood up, once again trying to make the torn clothes look as close to sophisticated as possible. He look the girl's hand and dragged her down to the kitchen where both Erik and Raven were seated, halting there conversation at the two figures entering.

"We figured it out!" Charles declared the news as if it was Christmas morning for Ten-Year-Old. "All we need is to use Cerebro to build up her power." He started the plan with as much glee as before, his hand waving around madly.

Eric looked to Raven, hoping she would be the first to state the obvious and destroy Charles' dream of a better future. When he saw no sign of her bring up the one problem that stood in the way of their dedication he finally voiced "The only person who knows how to build Cerebro is Hank, Charles." A cold look crossed his face, hiding the fact that the disappearance of his partner did affect the metal manipulator, "and if you haven't noticed yet. No one knows his whereabouts."

Silence passed through the room all over again, making Ginger feel useless, it was her turn to plan a path to victory, a new collection of plans formed in her brain.

Plan A- Ask people if they know of the Beast's location.

Plan B- Become one of Shaw's soldiers and forget about the X-Men

Plan C- Check up on Carlton a famous Mutant Bounty Hunter

Carlton was nothing short of arrogant and no matter how much she wanted to help her no companions, his personality disgusted her. She sighed and mentally locked her mouth shut; her eyes looked at the different faces, all head's bowed with the eye's sending daggers at the ground.

Suddenly the brown-haired Englishmen looked upward eyes staring straight at what Charles had done and using no control she yelled "Don't read my mind!"

"I-I'm sorry..." He didn't stop however, his eyes continuously examining her features. "I understand how you feel," He began to reason, but, she was still angry. This was the first time her walls of privacy had been climbed, and she did not like it one bit. She returned to the room, the window still casting a heated ray of light on the concrete wall, she let out a grunt as she began to kick and punch the covered wall, releasing much frustration as she could.

Her body was pulled away and was slammed across the room, Eric had appeared with his right arm raised, and it still hovered over his body as he walked into the middle of the room. "You upset Charles." Eric spoke; getting straight to the point of his rude entry.

"He upset me" She counted; she knew it wouldn't change his view of the situation. Would you trust a complete stranger enough to take their side over your friends?

"Well get over it." His grip around the metal belt crushed her stomach against the wall, "now tell us the whereabouts of that Chris guy."

"His name is Carlton." She spat in reply, only causing Eric's resolve to go from calmly requesting answers, to squeezing out the needed information.

She began to squirm, a pain forming from where her belt was placed. She used her to attempt and pry off the metal, another fail. With no choice but to agree with her survival instinct, she screamed out the Bounty Hunters placing. She was then flung to the floor like worthless trash.

"Why do you care so much about Charles? Something you're not telling me?" She inquired in a teasing way; it was only to erase the memory of her embarrassment.

"I owe him." Was his serious and simple reply/ She sensed something in the sentence however, the way his posture was and the volume of his voice added to her suspicions that Eric did not mean it in the sense that Charles had done Eric a favour in the past, it sounded as though Eric was to do wrong by Charles, in the future.

Once she had regained breath, she straightened her back and began to walk through the building. She ended up by the entrance of the righteous soldier's home, joining the group just before they set off. Knowing she was now least favourite out of the pack.

The silence continued as they walked through the town, bodies were squished together in the tight space, the loud crowd of people trying to sell their useless junk. Seemingly distracting the small gang from their slightly awkward tension.

Raven began to inconspicuously searching through the range of items, knowing she would return later and perhaps purchase those that give her highest interest.

"This way." Ginger called, noticing the distracted warriors continue down the blocked path, they were about to turn another corner when the Red-Head stopped all from walking, she had taught her instincts to become alarmed every time she neared these Atoms, pure evil circulated her heart and vile rose in her throat. She looked at them all, not trusting her voice to crack and reveal just how terrified she really was, she needed to keep up the 'courageous hero' or else she would have failed herself. She locked eyes with Charles hoping he would read her mind so she wouldn't hate to say The Devil's name. Charles gave her a swift nod before looking at the two other partners that gave a nod to Charles, Ginger realising he must have sent a telepathic message using his psychic powers.

She gave the group a hand signal to tell them to follow her, she had all alarms set and based around, the devils atoms. They entered the building, all eyes roaming around the surprisingly luxurious setting, they were surrounded by gold, and polished wood reflected the shiny background. "This guy is sure liking the life." Eric snarled, a life where people were jealous of him was the kind of life he **should** be living.

"Shut up," Ginger whispered she heard voices coming from a room; the door had 'Carlton's Office'. She stopped, everyone following her movements. The knob on the door began to turn, causing panic within the group.


	3. Chapter 3

The door opened, revealing 2 figures, while one was taller both still dressed as if they were kings. Perfectly tailored suits out-lined their bodies, the sleeves ended to reveal both of the bulky fore-arms, as the two men shook hands they both tightened their knuckles in a secret way of testing each other's physical strength.

"If I see, sense or hear anything about her, I will call you immediately!" The shorter dark haired Mutant Hunter lied, he made this obvious however, Shaw was too busy to threaten the younger offspring, and the Elder looked towards his watch and dashed out of the room with a final glare towards the Lord of Arrogance. The Bounty Hunter watched carefully as Shaw moved further and further away, keeping track of his aura, once he thought that The King was at a safe distance he finally called out to the four Mutants hidden around his room "you may reveal yourself now."

The black haired warrior watched as the four figures came out of there hiding spots, of course the Bounty Hunter had already gotten over the surprise of having 4 strangers enter his own personal hideout, as soon as he realised that one of the mutants was his red-headed pal he felt at ease and his mood instantly turned from cautious to mischievous, while Ginger became even more aware, knowing full well how Carlton was going to act.

"What a lovely-" Carlton was stopped when a petite hand was pressed against his chest.

"Don't." Was the short hello that Ginger gave before she entered his office?

"Here for Business again?" The Bounty Hunter asked melancholy, his shoulders lifting to emphasize how he isn't a fan of her ways, he knew why she did avoid any joyful conversations, anything playful would show another side to her, a side that needed to be hidden to protect herself because in times like these only stupid Mutants would relax.

_"So what are you here for exactly?" Carlton questioned with a smug look on his face after handing the young orphan a drink, Shaw had just won the War against Humans, now only Mutants walked the Earth. The first few months were mayhem, cities were in ruins, and there was so little food and water. If you weren't killed by a fellow mutant, you would have starved to death, only the strongest mutants were able to make it through._

_Ginger had learned to use her ability to create food, it wasn't a fine delicacy or even edible really - but it supplied stamina and running became a must in her lifestyle, soon enough it became a mix of common knowledge and instinct to punch and kick any life as everything was dangerous._

_Carlton just bargained his way through life, promising his service in locating any mutant, all he needed was a name or an image, with this information it became so easy tracking the creature that it was simpler then tracking down a screaming giant in an elevator, this also managed to get him on the good side of Shaw, making him basically untouchable._

_"You have a radio." She answered simply before taking a sip of the strong alcoholic drink; the Hunter gave a quick nod, understanding now that the reason for her presence was for Shaw's big speech that is said to begin tonight._

_"You excited for it?" Carlton interrogated, attempting to get the small girl to talk, he couldn't stand silence, even when he was alone he would talk to himself in order to defeat the quiet surroundings._

_"I'm excited for the moment someone drives a stake through the Vampire's heart." Ginger spat, her eyes glaring into the distance as she thought of how the King of this disgusting world had sucked away the beauty to fill his needs, as a Vampire would attempt to on a Human Being._

_Carlton stared with anticipation when he realized he had hit a nerve inside what he thought was a well-mannered young girl, but the sentence said before had proven him wrong, she was definitely self-righteous but she was underestimating the strength of her enemy. "You're a hater?" He could do nothing to hide the smile appear on his face, the young girl turned towards him and sent a raised eye-brow towards the Cheshire-cat grin that adorned the man's face. "Sorry, but, your personality really does not suite your appearance." To add to his apology he handed her another glass of fluids._

_"With a mixture of confusing sounds the Radio began to play, it started with America's national Anthem, then Britain's and a few others unrecognisable due to each being in a different language. "Good evening my Fellow Mutants, I am your saviours and Ruler, I am your new King." A fuzzy voice echoed through the room. Carlton and Ginger were repeatedly topping up on their drinks as Shaw went on about rules and what the future held._

_It came to a point when both Mutants were sat, yelling at the radio for lying, swearing and screaming while being merry. They had arms around each other as they both sang a new Anthem called: Shaw's Anthem_

_I am your bloody King_

_Bend down and kiss my Ring_

_Even though my feet smell of Cheese_

_They'll make you cough and sneeze_

_I sharen't get a wife_

_Hopefully I'll be stabbed by a knife_

_I'm lonely forever_

_A great person for Never_

_It was a work in progress, but both find the lyrics to be hilarious in there drunken state. They both did a content sigh as they lay on the carpeted floor together. "And on my final note, a last rule for All mutants to obey," the King took in a breath that was audible on the radio "if you go against me and feel the need to resist my wishes, then you are technically against your own king, which is punishable by death." With that threat the Radio cut of, the whole world sat in silence, there fate was made clear and now they had to make a decision. Bow down of fight back._

_"Fuck you butthead" The red-head giggled._

The Bounty Hunter smiled slightly at the memory, that was the last time he and Ginger got a long, he never joined the resistance or defied Shaw because he had no reason to want to die, Ginger saw this as selfish so they grew apart, even though sometimes Ginger did get thoughts of leaving Shaw to destroy this world, she would always tell herself what told Carlton "The world will end if we sit back and allow it" and Ginger was never one for watching.

"We need to find a man named Hank McCoy, also known as The Beast?" She continued to avoid eye contact and search through the collection of folders.

"The Beast?!" Carlton snorted "I don't even need to use my powers to find that Ape, he's down on Sunset Boulevard, wrestling for money nowadays. I tried once but as soon as he got me in a He-"

"Interesting story." She exited the office, she had gotten the information she needed and felt no need to carry on a conversation, and she carried on walking down the busy streets, hoping the rest of the gang was following behind her. She had been to Sunset Boulevard only once, but that day hadn't disappeared from her memory, making it easy to find her way back to the Ember like streets.

It was actually a beautiful street, especially when the sun is setting. The roads are made of some new mineral which was formed throughout the settling of the Nuclear blast, it is a deep red when lightened by the orange sun and rainbow like sky, the crystal ground turns into a mix of purple and yellow, through the day it's like walking on fire and through night it's like walking on the star covered lunar sky. The residence however weren't as beautiful, on the outside and the inside. It was pure anger and vile thoughts, the ugly minds mirrored onto their bodies.

Ginger finally stopped at the entrance; a giant stone wall towered over the buildings next door and across the small pavement, and a door with a rectangular hole cut through was placed in the middle. "Ginger!" a voice called from inside the crowd, she turned to see the group running after her, all with tired, fed-up expressions. Once they were all by her side she turned back to the door and tapped her fist on the castle-themed doors, the sound was loud and echoed slightly but wasn't overheard in the crowd of shoppers that passed without giving a second glance to the stone wall.

"What?!" A voice snapped, disgusting yellow eyes outlined by black appeared in the small rectangular cut out on the door. Ginger stepped back in fright, overwhelmed by the strong aggressiveness she was forced to face from the monster.

Charles took a step forward, noticing the Red-Heads apprehensiveness, "We need to find a man named The Beast." He spoke in a kind and slow voice, Ginger looked towards Charles for a second finally realising that he still hadn't accepted it; Man was a word said by not many these days, it was normal to ask for "A Mutant named...", was that why Charles seemed so hopeful, because he had yet to comes to terms with the fact that they were now extinct? The creature behind the door snorted and began to laugh; the group looked at each other with confused expressions being mirrored. The laughing face disappeared before there was a loud sound that did manage to bring attention from passers.

As soon as they entered the door was slammed shut, blocking any other outsiders from entering the 'Dark Side Territory'. The group of four took in their surroundings, faces only showing pure shock, it was almost like a fairy-tale setting, wooden houses with straw roofs outlined the crystal path, none of them could convince themselves that a few seconds ago they were walking down a graveyard of what was once a potential city of memories and institutional value. "Good luck," the Gate Keeper taunted, Eric was annoyed and as such used his powers to shut the door in the vile Bullies face, a giggle erupted within the gang and all eyes went to a scaly blue creature who was repeating the Malicious Mutants action and erupt with laughter.

"Raven!" Charles protested to the shape-shifters childish ways, in the mean time making Ginger jump at the sudden change in his personality, "Get back into cover form, now!" It was then the group knew, Erik instantly caught on to Charles' behaviour, he knew there was something that his Partner was hiding, something dangerous that could ruin their aim to achieve Hank's return.

Once again Ginger emotionally switched to optimistic, she looked at each Mutant, seeing how cautious they was seemed to be a metaphorical punch to the Child hidden inside, she had grown up hearing legends of these Freedom Fighters, how they fought for justice with bravery in their hearts and regrets in the trash can. She could literally feel the Lil' Ginger inside of her begin to shed tears, surely a couple of Mutants with bad reputations couldn't scare off Soldiers such as themselves?

"Let's go then, I have a pretty good idea where be- Hank is!" Her voice had become cheerful, the mood swing managing to refill the others with another level of Shock but also appreciation, secretly they all needed one spec of happiness, and the hilarity of the weird mood swing girl was enough humour to cause a small smile to hide under the seriousness. Ginger began to walk down the yellow brick road to find her wizard so she can return home, to her Human home.

Her eyes were stuck to the pavement as she looked at the mirrored image of herself, her skin looked ebony and her hair was more maroon then its natural blood red, caused by the shade of the pavement. Her figure was too thing and her torn jacket now reached her abdomen instead of its place beside her anus and her once skinny jeans seemed to be becoming slightly baggy. She wasn't pleased with what she saw, in her eyes the Mutant reflected seemed to represent a weak girl in need of help, all she saw was a brittle-boned child, but she knew different of course and that idea that she was so much more just fuelled the new persistence to complete this mission.

Finally she looked up, turning a few corners, the streets becoming more grimy as they moved further into the city, the place seemed to change from being a fairy-tale into a nightmare, blood seemed to be graffiti on the walls, loud cheering filled their ears, they passed more streets, concentrating on the image of the big-foot scientist they once knew. The genius they grew to love, Raven seemed most hopeful out of all of them. More corners, more blood, louder screams.

A small ring appeared in sight, it was made of littered items: Wood, Iron, rubber etc.; it was set up in the middle of a wide opening, Charles suspected they were in the Town Square, this probably being the pinnacle of entertainment for the rough residents. Lights brought all concentration to the stage and almost blinded the newcomers; they had to take some time for their eyes to adapt. A roar filled the room, quieting the crowd just for a second. All attention was taken from the besmirched surroundings and brought towards the blue Monstrosity that gave out another roar louder than before, allowing people to feel the full lever of this mutant's power.


	4. Chapter 4

Raven stared heart-broken at her old friend, or at least what was left. It seemed hard to believe that the blue creature with a thick mane and a bulk body was once the awkward Hank McCoy. "I'll be honest guys," Ginger was first to speak up, "I didn't think he was actually this much of a Beast." This quote managed to awaken them from their stare, Eric let out a growl, feeling insulted for Hank at the memory of how self-conscious the young genius used to be, he was about to add a snide comment when the wicked witch of our fairy-tale took centre stage. Ginger examined the hostess with green eyes, the white woman was not welcome, just the way she dressed was enough to enrage the red-head.

"Hello my Babies, I do hope you're going to enjoy our show," she put on a seductive smile while strutting across the ring with a white fur cape floating and following her lead. "Now my lil' Beastie Boy here is hungry to fight, any of you cunning victors want to give my Beastie a go?" Her flirtatious tone managed to get the crowd eager to prove themselves as if the beautiful Hostess was going to even give them a second glance.

"Don't even think about it!" Charles warned over the uproar of the crowd, his eyes fixed on the contemplating red-head. She moved her gaze onto the telepath, ready to rant about privacy before realizing they only had a short amount of time before the contender will have been chosen.

She looked back to see the White Queen smirking at her, this made her determination grow further. "There's no other way I can reach Hank. Don't worry yourself; I am not going to die, not today." Without thinking of her actions she placed her delicate fingers on to Charles' chest and pecked his cheek.

Beginning to tackle her way through the gathering, managing to trip twice and punch someone in the face which was probably good preparation for the upcoming battle, she even dared to climb someone so she could get access into the ring.

"Dibs on being the first to pummel this big blue Hunk-a-Junk." Ginger stared directly in Frosty Queen eye's, they were a pale blue compared to Beast's fur.

"Are you sure, don't think because you're a girl he'll go easy on you." The despicable woman teased, if it was up to Ginger she would have turned this- in not so settle words- bitch Human and force her to fight Hank and see how she likes her own Human flesh being pummelled by her own creation.

Instead she chose the more -like- Ginger way of ending this conversation and getting on with her next battle, these words being: "Of course, morals like that were destroyed just like this Planet". She gave the hostess one last smile before turning to once again face Hank McCoy's leftovers, veins popped out of his skin, see able through the untamed body hair. The unnamed girl stood in the middle of them both, introducing each contender. On the left corner was Beastie Boy and on the right was a newly named Red Herring, she couldn't help the giggle that escaped her perfect lips, again she flicked the snow white hair across her shoulder and rotated her body, a technique she used as to be a favourable host to the viewers.

Ginger clicked as many bones in her body as she could, trying to seem intimidating but as soon as the blue Beast stomped his feet and gave out a roar she realized just how much she looked like an ant. Plans formed in her mind until she came to the conclusion that a good defence is a good offence, the White Witch left the stage and the sound of a bell rang, she went to attack first. Hitting and kicking was as good as a plan as she could come up with, her fist hit a number of spots on the monsters body, sometimes she would be just stroking through the grease which had attached itself onto the monstrosity, and her feet just about reached his knee caps as she was too short to reach. She had no plan at the beginning, she just hissed and hit, knowing full well she was doing no damage to the creature; in fact she was bruising her fists more than she was bruising the Beast.

In seconds the creature picked her up, he just stared at her with a patient expression; she thrashed around screaming sometimes in laughter as the fur from Hank's arms tickled against any flesh not clothed, and then sometimes at the increasing pain as Beast began to tighten his grip around the fragile design of bones and flesh. She let out a scream, knowing the yell would be nothing to differ the Beasts motive, however, unknowingly the scream did differ Charles' motive, he sprung in to action-He lunged forward, not really thinking about what he was about to do. The facts that he was about to damage his own friend, the fact that this would destroy any plans he had, and he was doing it all for a girl he had just met. Charles did forget however of Eric, who had foreseen Charles' movements and was already having the metal twisting hands around Charles.

Eric didn't need to be a Telepath to know that both Ginger and Charles would have ended up mush if allowed to fight the powerful Beast, and would rather have to face carrying home a dead Stranger then carry his best friend's bones home. This made Ginger suffer further as the group of three watch what was now surely becoming the red-heads destruction, they all wanted to help but they knew that included harming Hank, and not even Eric with his cold metallic heart was able to do so. Ginger was thrown to the ground with a loud thud, the release of being near the creature was welcome, she had no time to react, and she didn't like the prospect of being thrown once again. She decided that strength was her weakest department, concluding that speed was the best option.

She kept doing laps around the ring, analysing the Beast and figuring its weakness. It was a bulky monster; more of fat then muscle, so it should be easy to make the Beast become tired, then she could easily jump on its back and use her ability. The plan became a step-by-step guide in her mind and it was all figured our... or so she thought.

The Beast used some part of its lost mind and figured out the repeating route, it turned around and Ginger was swallowed by the large blue stomach, the monster bent its spine and belly bounced its competition so Ginger was once again thrown to the floor. She had an epiphany while lying on that ground, a saying 'The bigger they are, the harder they fall.' It was an addition to her plan now, she stood once more but instead of running around like a madman, she stood her ground with eyes only focused on the blue fur ball. It started running towards her, even though the ring was small, in Gingers point of view the Beast travelled at an antagonizing speed - her heart beating erratically as it moved closer and closer. In the last few seconds the red-head laid her body on the ground, landing with more grace then the other times as this was an action by her own will, she felt the brush of his untamed aqua fur. She didn't see the effect of her actions, her eyes firmly shut in case the plan backfired and Hank would recoil by beating her to death.

However, instead of blood filling the ring it was overcome with an eerie silence. She pulled herself up from the crouched position she was in before. Her eyes fell on the body that had managed to cause a gaping hole to appear on the ground. The world seemed almost asleep, just the light sound of breathing filled the space. Every eye was on the giant hole which now decorated the gusty floor. More seconds passed, had she won? Her mind reeled with thoughts, a small smile forming on her dry lips, her frail arms slowly rising in victory; however, it was a short sense of accomplishment when a blue blur jumped in front of her, Gingers eyes tried to follow the monster- tried being the main word.

Punches came from every corner and soon enough her body couldn't take any more, she curled up on the ground and took the beating with no disagreement. This was it, this was her giving up. Who was Ginger trying to kid? She was too petite to harm a fly, too unhealthy to run, too battered and broken to have enough stability to take on this world alone. "Come on Ginger!" Came the British accent, the smooth words came at just the right time. Yes, she was petite in a bad way, she was unhealthy and yes she was battered and broken, but no! She was not alone. This realisation pulled at her heart strings, she had hidden away from the fact but not now, she realized the hitting had stopped and slowly began to make the final decision, which action was she going to take.

She could succumb to the stereotype that she was nothing but another frail Mutant, or fight back for what she believes in. She knew what her ability could achieve and she asked herself, what if? What if in ten years' time the Human race was once again a reigning species, facing all their first world problems but all in all, alive. All thanks to one girl, a small Ginger weak Hero. What if in ten years she is growing old with a husband and creating more Human life forms? Every Sunday just relaxing and sitting around a lovely roast with friends and family, smiling and laughing like she use to before all of this hell? She didn't need to finish off Hank; she didn't need to win this battle when this was just a small tiff in a bigger war. It was time to dive in hatred, rise above the pain and fear. Slowly her eyes opened and revealed to the naked eye simple Green orbs, but to those that looked deeper, they were the ones who saw Gingers mightiest emotion, her creation and her downfall, her grace and her sin, her malignance.

A hiss slivered through her lips as the body began to once again raise from the ground, halting the Beast's celebration, her ability to revive and persist through injuries shocking everyone. Hank blinked twice to assure that the puny girl was serious about taking on the Mammoth like Mutant for a third time, when she stood with a straight position without wavering for five seconds he became suddenly thrilled with excitement; she was the challenge he'd been waiting for.

"Hey Bozzo!" She taunted "you feeling hungry? How about a Knuckle Sandwich?" The smile on her face ridiculed him further, which in return made her feel first-class. The Ex-Scientist charged toward her with full intensions on tearing the females limbs of, fantasizing about the moment she will be unable to stand up and face him for a fourth time.

He started with a well-known move where he tossed the unsuspecting victim into the air, making them crash land and become an easy target for the beasts beating, of course this only works well when the victim is credulous to the method, when the blue mutant went to throw the Ginger Mutant over his shoulder, she made a surprise move and used unanticipated flexibility to manoeuvre her arms around Beasts neck with clenched force as to hold on, knowing this experience would probably be like featuring in a rodeo.

The blue fur ball thrashed around, yelling in panic at the sudden attachment on his back. He had no knowledge of what was about to happen. Ginger took in deep breaths concentrating on Hanks DNA, she blinked and a third vision was born, she saw every Genetic Structure, her mind concentrating on the closest which was of course Hank McCoy's. Through the skin-to-skin content she transferred a large blast of power in to Hank's core.

Through this alteration Ginger could feel all remaining power being released from her body, changing Beast back Human took more endowment, the mass of Blue Mutation began to shrink and pale. Fore began to fall onto the ground and shrivel in to nothing, and like the strands of hair, both bodies plummeted to the ground.

The three side line Mutants ran with every intension to aid the worn companions, Eric was first to have contact with Hank, he saw the skinny bare body and in seconds had wrapped his leather coat around the sleeping body; picking up his old friend and setting of home, with a happy heart moving along with them.

Charles attached himself to the other dormant body, accumulating the body in his hands and transporting body back to their humble abode.

The group of five travelled through the quiescent crowd, all eyes widened at the miracle ability they had seen, unexpressed panic built in there carnivorous hearts. They now knew of the ultimate weapon which would surely end this war, bringing one side victory. In their minds they could all picture the downfall of a Mutant controlled planet.


	5. Chapter 5

Ginger sat on a worn stool, still recovering from the massive drain she had experienced the day before. Her eyes were leering on the sleeping body that seemed to continuously twitch, causing numerous false alarms to be cast throughout the whole group. Hours had passed and still the mahogany orbs of Hank McCoy had yet to reveal themselves. Every 5 hours the group would switch and keep watch to know when Hank was finally awake, but, as more time passed, the thought that she had once again failed seemed to grow.

"Did you know Mutation took us from single celled organisms to being thee dominated form of reproductive life on this planet," Charles entered the dusty room with a glazed expression and a happy smile, "infinite forms of variation, with each generation, all through Mutation." He finished with a sigh while carefully placing himself on the vexatious rubble ground, squirming slightly to try and find a comfortable position.

"To say you're fighting for the humans you seems oddly amazed by Mutants." Ginger replied quizzically, she couldn't deny how it made her more confounded by the Telepathic Male.

She watched the delighted expression turn to a look of pure amusement. "The Earth belonged to the Humans first; I believe the saying is 'finders, keepers. Losers, weepers.'" A laugh was emitted through the hollow room. "So, you know our story and I believe it's only fair if you tell us your background information." Charles was trying to be nonchalant about this subject, after the first time they met he knew she was rather protective of herself. But, the others had agreed that if she was going to stay then they needed more information on the phenomenal Mutant.

She instinctively shook her head, what they didn't know wouldn't hurt them. An awkward silence settled around them, Ginger knew she could have left the room any time now that she was of duty; she just didn't want be alone and she enjoyed Charles' presence considering that he was the only one in the X-Men group that seemed to like her. Charles picked at the ground, destroying it further, finally he interrupted the sullenness by stating "I could just read your mind," their eyes connected with lightning speed and all Charles could do was send an apologetic look for using such an 'Eric-like' technique for information.

"I trust you not to through." Her face fell down to her lap as a red tint began to grow on her cheeks, the word 'trust' was not often thrown of her tongue so gently, she wasn't even sure if it was in the dictionary that resigned in her head. Trust was as impossible as her ever joining Shaw's army, it shouldn't and wouldn't happen.

"How about we do it little by little?" He offered, "We start with basic information and as our friendship grows, so does the information." Ginger hesitated, what counted as basic information? Family background? Date of Birth? Or simply just the colour of her eyes? Questions were repeatedly shot into her head, how was she expected to give information away when she was unsure of trust towards the Mutant. "We could start with information about your Mutation?"

"My Mutation?" Ginger enjoyed his persuasiveness and was glad that he had picked a comfortable subject. Any Mutant you ask will probably boast about their ability, proud of the power they possess, some would do with more chivalry while others would scream with unneeded pride, and Mutants ability was basically a person's identity. "I can't tell you much really. All I know is that I can control Atoms, so I guess that means I can manipulate pretty much anything." The Red-Head shrugged with a small smile gracing her thin lips. Charles however, was still marvelled by the uncanny power of her Mutation; he'd heard and seen a number of different Mutations but this had to be -by far- the most sumptuous and surprising. When practised, Charles knew it could be powerful.

He wanted to dig as far as the small girl would allow him, "and how did you find out you can do all this?" Ginger could easily tell that Charles was intrigued, a giddy feeling flourished in her stomach, she was impressing Professor Charles Xavier.

The memory replayed behind her eyes. "If you're hoping for some bad-ass tale of how I rescued someone from being murdered then you're talking to the wrong person." Ginger giggled, refusing to admit the lame story about her powers and how she became fully aware of the Mutation in which she had grown accustomed too.

"Oh come on, Ginger, you know I'd never judge you wrongly!" The British male used his charm to manipulate her mind. Making the beautiful women beside him feel like a twelve-year-old, the way he looked at her made a tidal wave thrash around in the pit of her stomach. In a gentler voice Charles added "I promise," once again captivating Gingers heart.

She did a melodramatic sigh. "Fine! My mum made a hot chocolate, but, it was too warm so I somehow cooled down the particles. Then after the Nuclear War I was able to do bigger things." Her shoulders lifted and then fell, Gingers unspoken words being sent through sign language. Her compadre in this conversation wanted to burst out laughing, an extraordinary ability found in the most un-extraordinary ways. "What about you?" She pushed the conversation further, "it must have been scary hearing people's thoughts." The Red-Head pondered; putting herself in Charles' position.

"He repeated Ginger's shrug, it soon becoming a common feature in their conversation. "It was at first, I suppose, although I grew up and learned how to turn my Mutation on and off, and as a conclusion it became less staggering. Another silence began to set itself around the two new friends; they questioned whether this meant that they had made a step forward together, had Ginger just opened up to someone? Has Charles actually found a trustworthy Mutant?

The comfortable presence between the new partners was interrupted by a blue figure with a request and a mission. Like Charles she was hypnotised the new ally. "Oh, hello Charles!" Raven gave a short nod towards Charles and then did the same gesture towards Ginger, "I was hoping one of you would come to the market with me? Yesterday I saw some things we needed," this was more of a scheme then a request, the blue Mutant knew that Charles was on watch and saw this as a great chance to confront the stranger.

"Well I'm off duty now; I guess I could come along." Were the apprehensive words that passed through Gingers lips?

"Great!" To show that she was ready to go, Mystique transformed herself into a more human-resembling creation, a blissful smile placed on the porcelain face.

In a matter of minutes they were forcing themselves through a large crowd of Shoppers. The outcome of the shopping task was a good workout which both Raven and Ginger didn't mind. A number of topics were thrown into their conversation, ranging from 'the good old' days' to their favourite ration.

"It must have been easier though, having Charles and Erik there to protect you" The Red-Head thought out loud, surely Raven would have been spared from seeing the darker parts of surviving Shaw's era. Those two men were both gentlemen - even now, after facing Mother Nature's darkest side- and would most likely avoid wounding women mentally or physically, especially a close friend such as Raven.

"I suppose, didn't you have anyone?" The blue Mutant acquired, "A Friend? A Family?"

Ginger winced at the thought; Shaw had taken away any comfort she once owned, because she was the only Mutant in her family which meant when the nuclear missiles finally hit, her relatives were goners from the beginning.

"No." She ended the topic there, Ginger now felt both depressed and stupid. She would have foreseen the question would be thrown back at her! She continued to walk down the market, trying to replace the images of the dull clothes that were being sold.

"Oh my God." Raven whispered, loud enough for Gingers attention to be directed top what the blue Mutant was astonished by, as a consequence, Ginger was hit with the same shock.

On a wall across the street stood a number of posters, a grey rainbow mixed between the colourless images, one that had caught their full attention the most was a medley of grey which portrayed Gingers face. The more they looked, the more copies of the posters seemed to appear - all with the words 'wanted' written boldly at the top. "We should probably go." The pair turned direction towards their so called home.

Ginger did her best to keep her face down, fearing that the bright colour of her hair would be a siren and bring all attention towards her identity; Raven was just as panicked, coming to conclusion that the previous battle between Hank and Ginger had not gone unnoticed by Shaw. Once they got too abandoned path. Ginger finally raised her head, sending Raven a panicked expression.

"We'll talk to Charles," she decided knowing he was more brain then brawn. "He'll know what to do." She tried to comfort the Red-Head, but, Gingers thoughts circulated on the idea that she'd either have to forever hide in a sanctuary of imprisonment, away from the cruel world but also hidden from its beauty. Shaw had done his best to implode the beauty. But, nature was something he could never defeat. There was the sunset that set a purple and scarlet mixture to be flaunted in the sky. There was rain as well, the deep blue drops that seemed to enchant Ginger and make her want to sing and dance, to cause splashes as she crashed her feet in puddles. And she'll have to miss out on all that just so Shaw won't win.

Thoughts became more and more depressed in her mind; the only thing that seemed to brighten up the dark void was the fact that she was hopefully going to have the company of the X-Men with her. They came closer to the familiar luck at the buildings crumbling exterior, with its grey walls and boarded windows the Red-Head couldn't deny how much it resembled a prison.

She had followed Ravens path back to the room they had previously abandoned, only to find that Charles and Hanks sleeping figure had vacated the premises. Two girls looked at each other with even more panic coursing through their pumping veins. "Charles!?" Raven called immediately, waiting through a torturous silence.

"In the Kitchen!" Came his own swift reply. Although his reply seemed to form more questions, where was Hank McCoy and why wasn't Charles Xavier watching him? Both Female Mutants travelled towards the staircase which led to the desired destination.

And there, in all his - finally clothed0 glory, stood Hank. Raven was first to squeal and run in to a welcome hug, a simple embrace both creatures had missed dearly. "Hello again," The Human boy snuggled closer to the Human resembling girl, feeling a sense of comfort in Raven's presence. Hank looked up to see the other Female in the room and he was incapable of hiding his thrill, he had already been informed of the Red-Heads ability and what she had done for him, including she would hopefully do for the extinct Human Race. She gave a simple nod as hello, unsure on whether his personality was transformed as well as his genes.

"It's great to see you awake." She made a quick comment before turning towards Charles and bringing up the subject that was most important in her mind. "He knows of my ability, Shaw knows," just saying those words managed to stress her body further and caused tears to form in her ivory eyes.

"What?" Charles asked with an aghast tone, although, he had already suspected that the previous battle would cause attention towards the group.

Raven finally separated her body from Hanks to stand beside Charles. "It's true! There are like a million wanted posters for her." The Shape-Shifter added.

"Well," the Human clapped to receive everyone's attention "guess this just means we need to rebuild Cerebro quicker."

"What do you need?" Eric finally spoke up, standing straight with crossed arms. Standing like a man on a mission.

The former Mutant stood in thought, trying to recall everything they need to recreate Cerebro; he found a piece of paper and pen. He wrote down everything that could easily be found in the market. "This is just the simple stuff; I'm also going to need plenty of metal." He continued to write items down on the torn paper, "and is there anywhere I will be able to work?" Raven was surprised at the scientist courage, it was different from the Hank that clouded her memory, and the shy and self-preserved person had been replaced with a determined entrepreneur.

"There's an old office you'd be able to use." Eric suggested.

"Wouldn't be better if we used the basement?" Ginger spoke up, the thought of consequences for defying Eric not reaching her mind. "It's bigger and hidden under that slab thing," she soon became uncomfortable under all their stares - especially the demeaning look she received from the metal twister- she twitched slightly and looked down.

Charles nodded towards Hank and gave a warning look towards Eric. "Let's get on with it then."

Raven snatched the list of Hank and began to drag Eric away with her. Charles took part in the departure by leading Hank towards the hidden basement. This left the Red-Head leaning against the chipped wooden counter while her heart seemed to repeatedly break. She felt alone and weak, desperate for reassurance that the team actually saw her as an ally. Not a weapon.

What if they realized she wasn't useful, she was destined to be kicked out as soon as the plan became a failure. She knew that no one liked her, even to the good guys she was seen as a nuisance, she would instantly be forgotten and return back to roaming living hell, only this time she would be purposely hunted by Mutants. Ginger had to do something about it, something to make her more beneficial and to make her more shielded.

She began her journey around the tall building, looking into each room to find the largest space. Once she came across a room that was shaped like a large square, it had mirrors placed across two walls while the other two were a pale cream, it was probably the most decorative room in the worn out building.

She walked into the middle of the room - remembering Eric's techniques- she raised her left arm, trying manipulating the atoms. She could feel every atom flowing through the air, stroking against her skin, going down her throat. But, they stayed in place, she could do nothing.

"You need to concentrate more; right now you're just hoping that you'll do something." Charles appeared in the doorway, examining her actions closely. She dropped her arm and turned to look at him with an ill-fated expression.

This was the first time she didn't want to be in the mind-readers presence.

"I'm trying." Her eyes could no longer bear to look at him, the way he stood showed how almighty he was. She envied the power he had control over. He entered the room fully, standing beside her.

Taking both her hands he forced the small Red-Head to connect with his gaze, "I know you are." He sent her a reassuring smile, purposely using his charm to make her attention purely on him, "just remember in other situations where you used your Mutation, it was when you're fighting instinct had come out because you needed to be saved. What you're doing here is reaching out to the instinct without having the adrenaline rush, force it through your body," while speaking he had moved his body, so he was standing behind her.

His hand caressed her left arm, gently lifting it. "You feel all this power flowing through your veins?" He questioned in her ear, his warm breath being blasted onto the girl's neck. In seconds she became very aware of the current that swam through her body, a slow nod was forced as she tried to pull all concentration onto the waves, which was hard when stood in a demeaning position around Charles. "Good, now I want you to collect all of it to create an energy source."

She did as she was told, pulling all the power in to hands, ignoring the grip Charles had on her arm, her hand felt warm and her fingers were tingling. None of it was a gentle pleasure though; the tingling was like a needle was repeatedly being stabbed into her palm. The word concentrate repeated in her mind as she held back a grimace.

"Ginger," Professor Xavier whispered "open your eyes." She apprehensively opened her eyes to see a red light collected in her hand, she wasn't sure whether it was nuclear or electric, and it certainly was beautiful though. As the two looked at each, their grins couldn't be bigger.


	6. Chapter 6

Eric ravelled slowly behind Raven, detailing every move she made as if he was writing a novel in his head. She was in Human form, her blonde hair almost binding to look at, it reflected light and sparkled like a piece of crystal. Her pale skin was like a china dolls, it looked almost as smooth as a piece of silk. Her lips were full and seemed to fit in with her own unique human resembling beauty. Yet, to Eric she had never looked so repulsive. "I'm pretty sure Hank doesn't need a blanket for making a machine." He sighed.

"No, but Ginger does, her room is colder than the Arctic because of the broken window." She paid for the colourful collection of cotton. Eric sighed and shook his head, not being able to understand why they needed the girl, they never needed the humans to return, and Shaw just needed to be dead. The only reason Eric was still going through this sequence of events was because Charles confirmed that the finale was Shaw's demise.

After another round of Raven collecting mindless gadgets which were no use to recreating the machine, they finally got to work with accumulating everything on the list. They decided to start with all the simple instruments, tools were probably the easiest to come by in the market - Mutants with abilities that wouldn't help them survive the hardships of getting by would usually collect any pieces of material that could also attribute as a weapon; you'd be surprised how far a toothpick could go.

At the moment they were looking for a screw driver, probably in the top ten of the most used pieces of weaponry and as a consequence it was also a rare thing to find in an ordinary market such as this one. "Excuse me." The Shape-Shifter politely called. They had found a stall filled with hammers and nails and drills and wrenches, a whole collection of different tools. The harder that she look though, the more obvious the fact that there are no screwdrivers became even more obvious.

"What?!" An old woman snapped, her grey eyes scanned the youthful woman in front of her, jealousy burned in the widow's heart. The old woman began to compare each aspect they shared figuring which one held more beauty. It was hardly tough to figure out.

The porcelain features won over the wrinkles that covered her whole body. The yellow glow of Raven's hair won over her grimy shade of grey that filled the woman's knotted hair. The small nose won over the face-consuming snozzle she owned. And just like that, Raven became the hate in the crooked woman's heart. "Well!?" the old lady rushed.

Eric was first to notice the spiteful tone which covered her voice, he stood in front of Raven and then sent the stall owner a smile filled with charisma, enough to charm the vindictive woman. He would much rather use his power to force the answer from within this lady, however, he knew that this would cause an outcome of the two partners being put in Ginger's position: Being hunted down by a pack of hatred.

"Why hello." He began, a Cheshire cat smile managing to pull at the cold heart that thumped in the stall owner's chest. "I was hoping a young lady such as yourself would be able to help us find a certain item."

Her legs went weak and she had to hold onto the desk in hopes not to fall over after being repeatedly wooed by this stranger. "You can call me Meredith." Her voice had become weak, not as dominating as it was before.

Eric did a mocking laugh on the inside, who knew he had other abilities that weren't just manipulating metal. "Well then, Meredith," an automatic wink was sent to her and as a consequence her heart did an automatic flutter. "We are hoping to purchase some screwdrivers."

"Then you're in luck, handsome." Meredith turned around and began to search through her collection; because she was bent over she was purposely making her bum more visible to the male Mutant, swaying her anus continuously as she consciously took her time. "Is this what you want?" She opened up a black plastic box of and revealed at least 5 different types of screwdrivers. Eric turned to raven for confirmation that these objects were indeed what they had set out to find.

She nodded her head and he turned back to the vile Mutant, "that's exactly what I want." He moved his hand towards the pouch filled with money, "how much?"

"For you, and just you, about 10 Dollars." This was Meredith's own way of flirting. Her own way of giving them what they want in hopes they'd come back wanting more. They did the trade and then the pair went their own path away from the lustful grandma, Raven was obviously first to let out a gleeful laugh, amused by Eric's unusual behaviour.

He could only huff in response, not enjoying the way that she mocked him. "What?" His glare sent shivers down her spine.

Raven had often wondered if Eric knew how frightening he was, sometimes she would be lucky to see the gentler side and experience him actually caring. But, most of the time he would simply stew in a pot of boiling hatred for the world, for Shaw's kingdom. The blue Mutant knew that this would either drive him to win, or, destroy any remaining light inside the broken metal bender.

"Nothing, I'm sorry." She was very careful as to not get into Eric's bad side Charles and Eric had countless fights, it was unusual at first; he was always the calm one. Raven soon had to learn that in this day and age, personalities had to change.

She carried on to walk down the street with her eyes looking everywhere but Eric. She saw numerous things she would love to collect, however, one caught her eye the most. It was a beautiful family portrait which was slightly worn out; luckily the image was still very clear. It was a picture of a mother, a father and a child. It was a stereotypical, normal, family. Something that a younger Raven had always fantasized about. Present Raven had learnt to accept the fact that this probably would never become a part of her lifestyle, but after this portrait, the child inside of her became active and was reaching out to the canvas in need. This change of mood did not go unnoticed by Eric.

He too scanned the painting, although he saw something much different. Instead of the beautiful piece of Art which Raven seems enable to vision. He saw puny mortals which thought themselves to be the concept of perfection, lost souls daydreaming of being rulers on what was always a mutation-owned planet. The starry-eyed look that Raven gave this picture seemed to sicken him; he was perplexed with his feelings though, as much as he hated the humans those feelings did nothing to the multitude of emotions for Raven.

"Excuse me," a voice came from within his throat. Not really thinking about what he was doing and in seconds he had paid for the portrait, he handed it to the grinning Raven.

She examined every wonderful detail, a warm gratitude rising in her stomach. "Thank you, Eric." She wanted to hug him, kiss his cheek and announce that he was her best friend. But she knew that would be too formal for Eric, he enjoyed the cloak of shadows that made him seem like any other Mutant, he wanted to stay invisible. "I thought you didn't like Humans," she meant this sentence to be just a joke, but, a side of her was curious on whether he wanted the same dream that Charles had pushed on them.

"I have nothing against Humans; their morals however." He did not continue after, unsure on whether she would keep his views a secret. "All I'm saying is when the Humans stood tall on the food chain, they glowered at us like we were freaks, they were afraid of our powers so mocked us in hopes they would emotionally scar us in to hiding." He was trying to explain without breaking her fantasy, "you dream of this normal like, well now we have it. No Humans to judge us, this is our chance to have the life we were banished from for being different."

Raven stood with the frame against her chest, letting his words sink in. She knew everything he said was true. She had become so sucked into Charles personal paradise she hadn't realized the Haven she wanted was more reachable when all the Apes were gone. She was officially lost in a choice of what what was needed to be and what was right. "Does this mean you're not going to fight for Humanity when the time comes?" She needed to know what side he was on. So she could decide which side she wanted to be in.

"Honestly?" Eric was still unsure of whether he wanted this personal information to be leaked, but as a consequence of keeping in these thoughts, he was already willing to burst. "I do not care for the Human rights, or the Mutants. I care for Shaw and what must be done."

He knew she saw the carnivorous spark in the eye, the imagery of ripping at Shaw's heart and destroying his kingdom was Eric's personal paradise, and she saw this. The metal bender walked away, Raven soon following behind. She wasn't going to tell anyone, a new self-respect formed inside of her as she realized Eric entrusted his darkest secret within her. Throughout the rest of their trip out doors she pondered on her future, which path she would choose. Charles had promise; she had always had trust with this man, ever since he rescued her as an orphan scrounging the streets for a home. Eric had the dominating one though, a life as King and Queen as they led to Mutants to a civilisation that would be considered normal for freaks such as themselves.

Then there was her own personal paradise, what if she abandoned them for her own reality. She could move to a richer side of the ruined world and find a man. Maybe she'd be lucky and find a man who was attracted to the natural her, the blue her. They'd get a house that was away from the dangers of this world. Have a Kid or two. And then get their own portrait of the family which would forever hang over the fireplace in the front room. Was it weird that the man in her mind looked a lot like the Metal Manipulator beside her?

"Well, well. What do we have here?" Eric's voice snapped her from the daydream and she looked towards the two awkward Mutants that had sprung apart from each other. After returning they both went in search for Ginger, Charles and Hank. They found the telepathic Mutant and his red-head compadre first. Arms wrapped around each other and big matching grins.

"Shut up." Charles muttered, still not making eye-contact.


	7. Chapter 7

Weeks had passed and through a rush of adrenaline and hope, the gang had put together their abilities and created an impeccable machine. Although one Mutant still needed to take part and contribute using her gift. "Ginger!" Hank called from the basement, Eric had just finished connecting two pieces of metal which would now constitute as the helmet. Raven had gone to get wires from the market and Charles was able to connect the wires while Hank had programmed the computer.

"Yeah McCoy?" The red-head pranced into the room with a smile on her face. Ever since Hank arrived, the two had become very close friends. Hank was normal now, yet technically he was wrong. Once again. Back when the Humans ruled the world and Mutants were the freaks, he was put into the latter group. Even now, when Mutants finally took over he was placed in that group!

The one connection that Hank and Ginger shared was that they were both being hunted, to be killed. And somehow the two managed to form a friendship because of this fact. It was unusual for Ginger at first; she had always treated herself as a monster and as a consequence had avoided any sort of human contact. Charles was step one of her breaking the concrete block-aid she had built around herself. Hank was the second step to building a door for people -who she would give a key- to enter.

"It's finally your time to shine." He did a short nervous laugh at his own comical quote. "I need an energy source to power up all this machinery." A look of horror appeared on her face; sure she had been practising her power with Charles. But she lacked confidence in her ability and was constantly unable to use it. This didn't pass by Hank unnoticed; he stood up and held her elbows in a comforting way. "Don't worry it's just electrical! You said you were able to do that right?"

She nodded her head; in truth she was still unsure about her powers. She soon realized that what Charles had said was all true, her power only worked when she was in danger. When you are hit with a sudden pain, _instinctively_ you would flinch. For Ginger, when she was put in danger, it would be then that her power would appear and on instinct she would use it to save her. Although perhaps if she pushed herself enough and brought out her instinct to help others, maybe then the ability would be able to make an appearance.

Hank guided her towards a larger rectangular machine; he had kindly added two glove-like components so Ginger could use these to store the energy source within the generator. They felt uncomfortable around her tiny hands, the scratchy fabric causing her skin to become itchy. A torturous feeling filling her gut at the realization that she was unable to stop the tickling while supplying the energy. "Start when you want," the Human pushed in a comforting way.

Ginger kept taking in deep breaths, starting to feel a pressure weigh down on her shoulders. It began with the pins being stabbed in to her palm as she transferred the electrical energy. "10 percent" Hank called from his post. Deciding she needed to push herself in order to achieve the best reaction Ginger began to pulse more electrical currents in to the machine. The pain in her hands began to spread, by the time it reached her shoulders they had reached only 25 percent and as a consequence the red-head thought it would be a good idea to send a blast of energy through her body in to the generator. This was probably the worst idea she had, the initial shock of pain was the reason she had fallen to her knees and let out a loud scream. Her hands still remained in the gloves, the pain was now stabbing all over her body only instead of pins, and it was more like swords. Her gritted teeth were crushed together as she carried on sending the shock waves.

"Ginger, stop!" Charles' voice called as his arms wrapped around her thin body, attempting to pull her away. "God dammit stop!" He ordered.

It was no use though because as soon as she heard Hank announce they were at 77 percent she was decided. She just couldn't face failing the group, through the process of building this machine she was pretty much useless. Unable to go outside and too stupid to help with the technical stuff, this was her moment. "I can do this."

This soon became a war between two stubborn minds, the more dominant in favour of winning. And that theory soon became a fact as Charles managed to pull her away from the machine. Rage boiled in her veins as she began to thrash around, feeling hatred form towards the Telepathic male. "I could have done it," she yelled with her head high and red eyes. Without thinking about her actions; the girls arms violently contacted Charles chest. The movement did no damage towards Charles' body, although because of the impact he did take a step back.

Charles' eyes widened in surprise, unable to comprehend why she was acting in such a savage way. He summarised different options and decided that reading her mind to figure out her confusing emotions, he only found disappointment that was settled her heart and it had been in residence for quite some time. "Ginger, calm your mind." he moved closer and wrapped his arms around her body in hope of bringing her a sense of alleviation.

She did not object to the order as she realized she must be put in a place of tranquillity before she did something stupid. That thought did not manage to end the heightened anger she was in, arms bashing against Xavier's chest until she eventually gave up. Tears fell from the shimmering green orbs that were attached to her pale face, it only occurred to her then that there was no use fighting Shaw, and Sebastian had already won. First he had ended the visible beauty of Mother Earth and now he had consumed all hope. Ginger thought she could handle this; she entered the war believing she had a renewable supply of the lightening emotion, but now it seems she had run out. The red-head could no longer suffice with being held by the Man she had endlessly tried to impress.

She climbed up the staircase and made her way towards the bedroom that the C-men had so kindly given her, all Ginger wanted at that moment was a lock on her door so she could loathe her existence alone. She also wished that Sebastian didn't existed, that she wasn't the only one with this -world saving- ability. And if the Gods were unable to grant her any of those, her desire for loneliness was certainly as impossible.

She expected either Hank or Charles too appear at her doorway. Raven was of female gender so she was expected to understand the vacancy of a friend by her side was need so a victim of trauma was able to think. And Eric hated her, she presumed.

"Get up." Ordered the German, his presence unpredicted by the red-head. The man who despised her ended up being the first to console her. He moved further in to the room and stood tall with his chin raised to show that at that precise moment, he was in charge. "We're going to visit Shaw."

To this statement she jumped up with her hair raised and goose bumps appearing, "excuse me?"

"What are you deaf?" He questioned rhetorically, "Shaw is the only person with a generator. If you haven't noticed we kind of need one."

She showed her defiance by crossing both arm and grimly replying with, "if you haven't noticed, I ain't a suicidal adventure whore!"

They were both fuelled by solid hatred and being near each other was not a way to calm their ferocity. "Now you listen her little girl, this is no time for you to have a paddy or give up! Charles, Hank, Raven. You're not a friend to them; you are so much more to those people." His voice lowered slightly. "To them you are hope; you're the only thing stopping them from kneeling down to that vile man. Can't handle it, too bad because you are going to have too." He dragged the unwilling female down to the doorstep. "You let us down and that is everything the resistance has done, down the drain." She couldn't reply.

Ginger felt like a cat had literally ripped out her tongue and stopped her from communicating. With nothing to comeback with she just followed Eric on their travels to catch up with Charles and Hank. The plan had been quickly mapped out to the group; they would go to Shaw's mansion and be guided around by an undercover resistance agent. They split up, find the generator and run. No one said it was full proof, but this was a rushed operation that needed to be completed.

They arrived behind the large building, everyone grateful that the Mutants who survived had no time to guard Shaw. A male Mutant dressed a vile auburn rag let them inside the large building, once the group entered they found themselves inside a smoky kitchen that was filled with numerous scents.

"Now, Eric ad I will look around the left while you and Ginger check the right, got it?" Charles instantly took charge; everyone accepted the order without question. They need to be as stealthy and as quick as they could in hopes that Shaw would not make an appearance. He owned 7 other Mansions around the globe, so it would mean the gang were very unlucky if he was at this building.

Hank and Ginger were the luckier of the two pairs; they had found a large room which looked the most promising to inhabit a generator. Many different types of machinery lingered on the walls, some large and others small. "You hear that clinking sound?" Hank whispered, even though his eyes were still marvelling the collection Shaw had acquired.

"Uh huh." Ginger would have nodded, but then she noticed that the Humans attention was infected by the surrounding contraptions.

"Look for the source of the ticking noise and I'm positive it will be there." He manoeuvred himself around the machinery, still secretly wishing to mess around with all the buttons. Ginger was taking interest in the noise, when she looked around, all she saw was a useless complicated stack of junk.

She rounded a corner and found a moving item and suspected this was the wanted generator. It was smaller than she had anticipated, although this concluded for an easier escape. "McCoy." She called, hoping no one was actually snooping around the room in order to protect what she presumed was important technology, and why else would Shaw keep them?

Hank made his rushed appearance and grinned when he found the only working piece of metal in this room. He was about to phrase a congratulations too Ginger when he heard the door open. It sounded like the person intended on making a slow entry but was betrayed by the squealing door, the footsteps were also difficult to hear. The Mutant and The Human were lucky that the floor was made of marble because it caused a tap every time someone gently placed down their foot.

Hank quickly began to remove a cylinder shaped part, a yellow glow was being emitted from inside and as soon as he took out the piece that yellow glow was the only thing lighting up the darkened room. He held up the piece of glass to light up their surroundings. "I forgot that if you take this out the power will turn of-" His sentence was cut short as a bullet was put through his neck.

"Oh my God." She couldn't move at first, her green orbs fixated on the blood that now dripped on to the glowing contraption. "H-Hank?" A lump grew in her throat when she received no reply, anxiety forced its way through her body as she realized she was stuck in the darkness being hunted by a trained gunman.

"Well hello, it's great to finally meet you, Ginger."


	8. Chapter 8

Ginger couldn't bring herself too turn around, already being able to decipher who that voice belonged too. A female dressed in black moved to return the providing energy source back in the generator and if the red-head wasn't clotted with shock, she would have begged from them to not reveal Hanks body in the harsh light. An action that needed to involve sympathy acted out by Sebastian Shaw? Impossible. Lights flickered back on and Ginger was able to assess the gory damage on Hank McCoy, a giant hole was punctured through his throat. All she was able to comprehend however was how his death was her fault. If she was able to control her mutation they probably would never have come here and this tragic event would not have been a reality.

She didn't fight back when the men in black wrapped their arms around her body and pulled her away. If anything she was thanking God for those arms, she was completely paralysed even though a murderers arm was now dragging her in to a white hall. "She's not human, treat her with some respect!" An elder Mutant called behind the group. The grip around her body softened, but they didn't stop forcing Ginger forwards.

The red-head still had waterfalls running down her face, she wanted to scream and punch a wall. Hopeless and alone, she knew this was her end. "Ginger," a memorable British voice called. She looked up, finding comfort in hearing the telepathic male's voice. She charged towards her friend in need of a loving amenity to ensure that everything will be okay, even if she knew it wasn't.

The swift movement caught her capturer of guard and so she was free to run towards Charles. Once they embraced she hid her head in his chest while his arms protectively wrapped around the red-heads tiny waist. "Shh, it will be okay." He had presumed that she was just scared because he hadn't realized the absence until Eric pointed it out.

"Ginger, where is Hank?" The German questioned apprehensively, unsure of whether he actually wanted to know. This question made her go in to hysterics, causing Charles to hold her with a firmer grip. His hand moved to her head as he stroked the bright orange curls. They had all guessed what happened to their Human companion.

Shaw signalled a nod to the guard, without any regret he yanked the mourning female from her snugness buddy and dragged her so she kneeled beside the reigning King of this catastrophic world. She finally realized what was happening and tried her hardest to rebuild the iron walls that had momentarily vanished as a consequence of the sorrowful event.

She kept taking in shaky breaths, trying to maintain focus and come up with a plan of action. "You know what I like most about this building?" Sebastian finally spoke up, "it's been built to stop any Mutant from using their abilities, only the weak ones though." Everyone was fixated on the corrupt beast, he seemed weary though, with wrinkled skin and greying hair; the group knew that his old age may make him wiser and as such more powerful. But, they also knew it made him slower and physically weaker. "Now let's get down to business, shall we?"

No one answered his question as they were all too busy sending glares in his direction, showing that they were not puppets with strings stretched out in hope he'll command them. "Fuck off." Eric spat in hatred with no regrets, even as one of Shaw's loyal followers split his lip with a single punch.

"Now now Sam, remember we mustn't hurt our own kind. The Leader shunned his apprentice before turning towards his new favourite Mutant, Ginger. "Now, I heard somewhere that you possess a very unique ability," He held her chin and gently forced her to stand up. She did not take the touch too kindly and was repulsed as his wrinkled fingers, this emotion was noticed by the melancholic look on her face. "And I would very much like to use your ability."

She found his politeness annoying. His tender touch on her body was defined, it was the kind of touch only lovers would share. Her heart only wanted to experience such a touch from one person alone. And this certain person was rather happy when she returned Shaw's kindness by spitting in his face.

"Now now Engelchen," Shaw still remained kinds. "You won't be able to save your friends with that attitude." Once those words had left Sebastian's cracking lips, he knew he'd won over the young girls heart.

She straightened her back and kept a serious face, "what do you need?" Charles jumped up at this statement, only to be pushed back in to a kneeling position by their ruler's peasant.

"Just for you to join the winning side." The red-head wanted to burst out laughing; he had no idea what he was facing. Many heroic tales had been passed round the Resistance about the X-Men, and from what she had heard, they didn't need her help to kick Shaw's ass. This was her chance to repay the group for taking her in, she could delay death from clutching the gang's hearts. Her thoughts wandered back to Eric's little speech about how she granted hope for a better World. Had he not realized that the only reason hope was accessible for anyone who took part in the resistance was because of the X-Men, the people who fought for a better life for Mutants and Humans? The people who defend this dream through all odds.

And it would be a tremendous crime to allow them to face death at this point in time. The telekinetic saw the considerate loom on her face. "No Ginger, think of the Futu-" He was unable to finish his sentence as a fist collided with his cheek.

"Ah yes, your world where Mutants live alongside Humans while everyone acts as if they're 'equals'" As he began to laugh, so did his family of worshippers. "Think about it Ginger, is this world that primitive Mutant speaks of what you really want?"

Of course it's what she wants, not specifically what the consequence of her dream was however. She just wanted peace, it didn't matter to her on who ruled over the planet, only that the ruler would be in favour of never-ending resentment to fighting. After experiencing a childhood of viewing a consistent war between her Father and her Mother, she made it her mission to deliver peace to as many people as she could, what better place to start then the whole Planet?

"I know that all you want is peace. And when the Humans are back, they will just go back to resenting us. So scared of us they instinctively need to wipe us out so they can feel relaxed. Even when we are gone the Apes will still fight with each other!" Shaw pointed out, mentally pulling her conscious towards his own team.

"And you'll let them all go?" Ginger nodded towards her friends; Shaw replied with a yes and put out his hand to seal the deal. Much to Charles dismay she returned the gesture and shook the Kings hand.

"Hatzazel!" He called and in a flash of bloody smoke appeared a Demon like creature, customized with red-skin and a devil-spike tail. The creature walks towards Eric and Charles; he placed both his hands on their shoulders.

The next thing the two men knew they had returned the revolting setting was their home. "Didn't expect you to enter like that," they both looked up to spot Raven appearing in the doorway, "where are the others?" She asked while helping Eric to stand up. Charles had already begun to pace the room, trying his hardest to figure a way of rescuing companion.

"Dead." Eric replied with a hard expression, "or at least one of them deserves to be."

The telekinetic stopped his actions and turned towards Eric with a dark look on his face. "Don't say that!" He ordered with a finger pointed as if he was a mother scorning her child. "She was trying to save us!"

Both of the Mutants were stunned momentarily as they had not expected Charles to lash out over the subject. "Face it Charles, she's given up!" The metal twister moved away from Raven in case the two men had a confrontation. Eric was right to suspect such an action because before he knew it, he was being pinned to a wall by a raging Charles.

"Stop it!" The blue Mutant screamed with angst, surprised by the two lads' behaviours. She pried them apart and once Charles had released Eric from his clutches, he decided he needed a change of scenery. The man needed to think for himself alone and with no interruption. He believed strongly that she had only committed betrayal so she would be able to save the group. He believed strongly that she would be able to save the group. He knew she always had respect for Humans, they feared her and others like her because they knew nothing about Mutants, and the Human race needed to be sure the Mutants race had no carnivorous side waiting to pop out. The fear was in the lack of Knowledge.

Three knocks were tapped against his door, looking up he saw Raven shifting around uncomfortably. It was safe to say she was slightly scared of the new Charles, the unseen Charles that had been kept hidden underneath his sophistication. She never expected Charles to have a breakdown; then again she never expected to meet someone like Ginger who'd make such a big impact on the group.

"I-I'm going t-to the m-market. I-I-f you w-ant something." Her stuttering depressed Charles further, he knew it was something she wouldn't be able to understand, just like he was unable to understand why Raven was constantly worrying about her looks.

"Please don't fear me," Charles walked towards her, trepidation took over her body and made her take a step backwards. "It was a momentary lapse, I'm so sorry." His voice was quiet and the way he looked, so weak and desperate for closure, pulled at her heart string. She had spent many years with the man and as scary as the ravenous Charles she had just witnessed was, she knew the real Charles and that made it all the more easier to forgive him.

"It's okay." She moved closer and found herself being embraced by the Best Friend.

"It's over isn't it?" To this statement Raven gasped, through all his life he had fought for the Human rights and to hear him say such a thing was completely absurd.

She pushed her body away and held him at arm's length, "this ain't over till the fat lady sings!" She quoted with only optimism and a smile on her face. Her happiness was passed on to Charles and he too managed to create a grin almost matching Raven's. "We'll be having a proper meal tonight so when I get back you better be in tip top shape."

She left Charles to his own devices and went to buy something that would make a scrumptious concoction. While doing so, she came across something that seemed a little too god-sent. So excited to show off her new discovery, she rushed back with only a bag of potatoes - much to Eric and Charles disappointment who had suspected one of Raven's wonderful concoctions that came with a beer. "Just listen to what I have to say!" She yelled over their whining of being sober, "this man is able to help us communicate with Ginger!" She introduced the new male. He stood rather straight with his knuckles tightly clenched by his sides to show he was ready for any type of confrontation.

He pulled the lit cigar from his lips and introduced himself with a deep tone. "The names Wolverine."


	9. Chapter 9

When Ginger opened her eyes she expected to see a plain grey roof and feel a cold wind attacking her skin. Instead she saw an elegant gold and white patterned ceiling decorated with an added chandelier and on her skin was a thick cotton-like cover that brought only warmth and comfort. She could have stayed there forever, all she wanted was to cuddle up next to Charles and act as if the World under siege did not exist.

Her wish did not come true however and the next thing she knew a person hidden down in her memories makes a reappearance in front of her, dressed in white with the same bouncy blonde curls.

_"Hello my Babies, I do hope you're going to enjoy our show," she put on a seductive smile while strutting across the ring with a white fur cape floating and following her lead. "Now my lil' Beastie Boy here is hungry to fight, any of you cunning victors wanna give my Beastie a go?" Her flirtatious tone managed to get the crowd eager to prove themselves as if the beautiful Hostess was going to even give them a second glance._

_"Don't even think about it!" Charles warned over the uproar of the crowd, his eyes fixed on the contemplating red-head. She moved her gaze onto the telepath, ready to rant about privacy before realizing they only had a short amount of time before the contender will have been chosen._

_She looked back to see the White Queen smirking at her, this made her determination grow further. "There's no other way I can reach Hank. Don't worry yourself; I ain't going to die, not today." Without thinking of her actions she placed her delicate fingers on to Charles' chest and pecked his cheek._

_Beginning to tackle her way through the gathering, managing to trip twice and punch someone in the face which was probably good preparation for the upcoming battle, she even dared to climb someone so she could get access into the ring._

_"Dibs on being the first to pummel this big blue Hunk-a-Junk." Ginger stared directly in Frosty Queen eye's, they were a pale blue compared to Beast's fur._

_"Are you sure, don't think because you're a girl he'll go easy on you." The despicable woman teased, if it was up to Ginger she would have turned this- in not so subtle words- bitch Human and force her to fight Hank and see how she likes her own Human flesh being pummelled by her own creation._

_Instead she chose the more -like- Ginger way of ending this conversation and getting on with her next battle, these words being: "Of course, morals like that were destroyed just like this Planet". She gave the hostess one last smile before turning to once again face Hank McCoy's leftovers, veins popped out of his skin, see able through the untamed body hair. The unnamed girl stood in the middle of them both, introducing each contender. On the left corner was Beastie Boy and on the right was a newly named Red Herring, she couldn't help the giggle that escaped her perfect lips, again she flicked the snow white hair across her shoulder and rotated her body, a technique she used as to be a favourable host to the viewers._

"Shaw wants to see you for breakfast." She ordered while throwing a dress on to the end of her bed, "now." With that order the White Witch left the room. Ginger smiled on the inside; it was great to know she annoyed one of her most hated enemies. Ginger sat up with no pain in her body for once; this seemed to be the only goo prize of succumbing to Shaw.

As she removed herself from the bed the red-head held up the blood red dress, its top half was made of silk while the bottom was simply cotton that flowed down to her ankles. It was the type of dress you saw only a royal wearing. Unintentionally she burst out laughing at the idea of how Sebastian thought he could win over her ideals with money, she had managed to survive through torturous circumstances and she still could with or without this stuff. She changed from the rather revealing white gown she had also been presented and put on the red dress, it all felt unusual having actual room in her clothing. It was safe to say she missed her usual cat suit.

She went to leave the room only to find two guards waiting to direct her towards the dining room. It was big with a long rectangular table stretching in the middle, on one end sat the devil himself. Ginger was placed across from him, shoved in to a chair in front of a whole buffet of different breakfast items. "Please, dig in." Shaw insisted whiles shoving a piece of bacon in to his own mouth.

It was horrible for her, she felt like she was just sat in the darkness without any knowledge of where she was and why she was there. Unable to stand the minimal knowledge she finally spoke up, "why am I here Sebastian?"

This question somehow managed to insult the Ruler; he gently placed down the knife and fork and clenched both of his hands together. "You are a very gifted Mutant, possessing powers that are so great and so feared." He raised himself from the wooden chair and stepped closer, taking his time to walk the length of the table. "And there are some Mutants out there who still wish to deny fear and go against me. So I want you to turn the resisters, Human." By now the German leader had knelt down to her height, his wrinkled hands cradling her legs.

"Why?" Ginger dug deeper.

"Because once they have become Humans they are now weaker beings and only then shall they know to fear me." Sebastian stood with a sickening grin that sent a shiver down her spine. "Now finish your breakfast. I need you to prepare for training."

"Training?" The red-head repeated, was _this_ what her life was going to be like? She would be Shaw's weapon, an object he used to possess Mutants with fear?

Shaw opened the door, allowing the woman from before to enter. "Of course, you will need to train if you're hoping to inflict the most torturous damage." Once again he left with a menacing smile.

Ginger was never planning on eating the food so took this time to interrogate the White Witch. She already hated the woman from the small chat they had when she first met Beast/Hank and now with his death, it became unbearable to look at the snow woman. "The names Emma Frost and it's not my fault he's dead." She rudely remarked, about to question how she knew what Ginger was thinking, the red-head was interrupted again. "I'm a telepath." It almost seemed like Emma was trying to show off about her Mutations, this personally annoyed Ginger in so many ways.

She decided to leave the room, not feeling the need to have any confrontation, she left the room and was once again being guided by two guards. Something inside of her snapped and as soon as they passed a part in the corridor where you could either turn right or carry on walking, and for some self-destructing reason her conscious made her turn right.

An extensive curiosity was always one of the red-heads flaws, the walls were lined with pictures of Shaw, some were paintings and some were pictures. It was like looking at a timeline of the Kings life. From the first pictures to the last, you could see how time had affected the old Ruler. Shaw's brown hair had lightened too a bright grey, wrinkles began to fold on his forehead. The line ended at a very recent picture. Ginger wondered if she would be able to obtain the camera, always had been a photographer at heart. Nowadays she never wanted to take a picture, there was no longer anything photograph worthy.

"Ginger?!" Emma Frost's voice could be heard from the end of the corridor. In a rush of panic the red-head fled. Not really wanting to know the consequence of her abandonment. A hand wrapped around her wrist and pulled her in to their own metal-like body, she didn't scream, she learnt from the previous experience with Charles that screaming would just end badly for her and whoever was her capturer.

Looking to her right she saw the White Queen pass by without a second glance. Her eyes turned back to who had rescued her and she found a rather well built man with uniquely styled hair. "Who are you?" She questioned, stunned at how many strangers have rescued her.

"Wolverine and I have a message from Charles."

This made a wide grin appear on her porcelain features, just the name brought tears to her eyes. All night she thought about the British Mutant, questioning herself on whether he had given up. It would save him from Shaw's wrath and maybe he'd give the Mutant life a try, it could be good for him. She tried convincing herself she wanted that life for the beloved Mutant, but a half of the red-head wished she could be a part of that life. So to hear he was still fighting for her... "What's the message"? She asked with a little too much excitement.

"He says they are coming, soon; they'll rescue you, train you harder and then win this war. Don't give up yet... and then Raven said some crap about a special dinner." Wolverine read from a piece of paper and once he read everything important, he scrunched up the paper and placed it in his pocket. A saddened smile rested on her lips, she realized now that the Telepath was never going to abandon this fantasy, he'd die for it. All she wanted was his happiness, even if it meant her own torture.

"Can you send him a reply?" As soon as Wolverine nodded she was already dragging him to her room where she located a pen and some paper.

**Dear Charles,**

**I have a better plan! Next week on - I believe - Friday, Shaw is having a ball. Where I shall also be using his own version of Cerebro to turn anyone involved in the Resistance Human. That is when you should invade and then I can turn Mutants not in the Resistance, Human. I miss you all, even Eric.**

**Love from Ginger**

She hesitated at first with putting 'Love. But, it was true, she loved everyone. Another flaw she had adapted too. "Here you go." She folded up the piece of paper neatly, Wolverine took no notice however and once again crushed the paper and put it in his back pocket, without any last words he shoved a cigar in his chapped lips and left. Leaving Ginger to dwell in the fact that she will be seeing her beloved friends once again, the red-head couldn't be happier.

A certain blonde knew this fact and couldn't resist crushing it. Frost entered the girl's room, examining different objects that had been placed inside buy Sebastian. In truth Emma was rather annoyed that she was being worshipped so much by their ruler, now that Shaw had a new toy to play with, Emma was shoved in too the bottom of his box of gadgets. "You seem rather happy all of a sudden." The White Witch teased.

"I was until you arrived." Ginger spat truthfully, snatching away the notebook from Emma's hand. "What do you want?"

"Just to say goodbye, I'm sure Shaw would love to hear about what you've been doing." She laughed menacingly, walking towards the door she put her hand on the latch only to find it was boiling hot, leaving a stinging burn mark on her palm.

Frost turned to the other Mutant with an offended expression. "I'm afraid I can't let you do that," Ginger snarled. Emma caught on to what game she was playing; wanting to eliminate her as soon as possible the White Witch raised her fist and almost punched the girl. Ginger quickly dodged the attack and then kicked her behind so Emma fell on her face. Frost recoiled by a doing a swift kick and knocking her down.

Now on the floor they began to roll around on top of each other, pulling their hair and throwing punches in all directions. They were so transfixed by the battle they didn't realize just how close they were to the window before they were too late. Both ladies were winded from landing so hard. Emma was first to get up which forced Ginger to also step up and run towards her. Lucky for the red-head the White Witch hasn't endured exercise in a long time and as a consequence she was rather slow while running.

Surprising even herself, a black orb formed in her hand and when shot at Emma, the Witch was thrown across the garden. Frost was surprised at the new attack Ginger had adapted. To feel safer, Emma transformed in to crystal form. It was the most beautiful thing that Ginger had ever seen, the way it reflected sunlight and formed a mix of colours to be transmitted on her hard skin. Frost began to feel over confident and didn't stop herself when malicious words were thrown from her mouth. "You need to start facing the fact that you're useless, you couldn't even save Hank from dying!"

"Shut up!" The image of Gingers friend flashed in her mind. He lay on the floor with blood gushing from his neck and re-seeing the empty eyes that seemed to watch her, as if they were pointing and blaming her for what had happened.

Knowing that she was getting under the red-heads skin, Emma continued. "You'll always be an unlovable freak, abandoned by everyone because you're just too weak. You're not perfect enough, just scum at the bottom of the food chain!" A cackle was thrown from her throat. With impossible strength the Crystal Woman pushed her to the ground. "Why are you even alive?"

A different kind of emotion was formed in her chest, unique to anything Ginger has ever felt before. It was dark; a murderous rage built up and made her heart beat faster. Remembering the technique Charles taught her, she raised up her arm, filling it up with a tremendous amount of power. "I am alive because I am the Ultimate Weapon." She admitted, Ginger hated the fact she had always been seen as a weapon, no longer could she deny it.

Emma froze, her crystal form beginning to fade. Once the female Mutants skin turned to its natural form, her skin began to burn and turn in to non-existent ash. Blood spouted from her face, teeth beginning to crack and hair turning to flames. "I am alive to stop shitty-ass mother fuckers like you." As Emma disintegrated in to nothing - her presence erased from the Earth - Ginger fell to the ground in an unconscious state.

Drained of ability, she had reached her limit. Or at least where she placed her own limit, the red-head truly did not realize what powers she held.

After hours of wandering a dreamless mind, Ginger awoke. Not seeing the same gold and white floral design she spotted this morning, instead she only saw silver. Memories of the before event corrupted her mind, guilt replaying the dazed state. What happened, it was like the power was her rage, she was drowning and the only way to survive was to drain the anger like emptying a jug of water.

Another difference from the first time she woke up was the fact that she unable to move. Looking down she noticed her body strapped to an iron table, she had no idea where she was and what she was doing there. All she knew is that she needed to escape, now.


	10. Chapter 10

Maybe, if she closed her eyes it could all disappear, all the imperfections in the world could disintegrate and she'd be left on a flawless planet. A world of peace, of perfection, where no one could point out your dysfunctions because there aren't any. Or perhaps a man of sympathy would shoot her in the head, knowing she didn't have enough courage. Maybe, if she closed her eyes, she'd never have to open them again.

"It's lovely to see you're finally awake." Shaw entered the silver container with a smile on his face, a proud smile on his face. "Have you calmed down yet?" The elder asks gently while placing his wrinkled hands on top of hers. Even though she nodded her head, the truth is she had no idea. In her stomach she felt an ache, it wasn't physical pain but it was painful. The dark aura numbed her body and it was so bad she couldn't even cry, all she wanted to do was have a fit of hysterics - to scream and cry - but the darkness wouldn't allow her.

She sat up and began to rub her wrist awkwardly prepared to be scolded by Shaw, surprising this event didn't happen. Instead she found herself being surrounded by Shaw's arms. "You're not made?" The red-head asked, feeling rather sick that she was working with a man who did not care about his partners. Something she knew that was the complete opposite of Charles.

"Of course not," Sebastian held the girl at arm's length and used his left hand to caress her cheek. "You've just proved that you're not as useless as I first thought. I'm so excited to explore what else you can do." Ginger supposed that his words were meant to be of kindness, she also knew that Shaw's definition of 'kindness' was totally different from the original meaning. She remembered the words she had said last night. 'I am alive because I am the ultimate weapon'. How could she admit such a thing? She wasn't a weapon; she was a Mutant, a living breathing species. A weapon is a gun or a knife, not her, but now everyone seemed to see her as a weapon and as the consequence the idea had sunk inside her own mind and manifested itself in to something bigger, a fear perhaps.

She'd been compromised.

"Now get dressed," The guard beside him placed a piece of clothing, the usual white flowing gown. She guessed Shaw had a stylist, there's no way he could have this great of a sense of style.

They finished taking off any restraints so that Ginger was able to move freely, she had waited until everyone had abandoned the room. She had just finished placing the gown over her head when she felt a presence from behind her. "Looks like sleeping beauty finally woke up."

Ginger managed - while jumping - to turn around and come face to face with Wolverine. "I wasn't out for that long." She placed her back on to the table; starting to slide on the slippers she had been handed. Most of the floor was made of wood which caused her feet to freeze when walking around in the cold.

"Ginger, you were out of it for 2 days." He explained, surprised at the fact Shaw had not explained this to her. She didn't flinch at his words. She had suspected that because she had used the power at full maximum, she must have drained all she had. As a consequence she needed to refill her supply and that apparently made her need to sleep for years on end. "Anyway," Wolverine changed the subject, "I got another letter."

He handed the sheet of paper over to her, she was about to open it up and read its contents when suddenly a door was opened beside them. Without thinking she shoved the dead tree down her underwear. In the doorway stood a very suspicious Shaw, his eyes examining the two Mutants as he pondered on why they were even in the same room. He didn't question Ginger's actions; he believed that she wasn't stupid or selfish enough to risk her friend's life on a plan that would probably fail. "Hello Logan. Might I inquire why you're here?" Shaw asked. Trying to keep a calming smile on his lips in hope that by using tolerance these people would be rewarded with an answer.

"He was just asking me to the ball," Ginger spoke up quickly with a suitable answer. "I told him I was going with you, but, I'll be sure to save him a dance." Her own seductive smile drove away any other suspicions the ruler had.

Shaw moved behind her and protectively circled his arm around her waist. Quickening her heartbeat as she realized how close he was to the letter, "and don't you forget." He spoke in a joking manner, but everyone in that room knew just how _dead_ serious he was being. Wolverine made his exit by using a muffled excuse which neither Ginger nor Sebastian could decipher. Shaw turned to her with a sympathising smile and began to guide up the stairs and out of the basement, he guided her towards her bedroom. She felt kind of satisfied when she came across the white and gold mixture of luxury. "I's okay you know, you should be happy about your new abilities!" He tried to sway her judgement of the previous murder she had committed. All this did was make her realize just how heartless this corrupt German was, and just how much she hated being here.

"I know, I just need time." She spoke in a gentle manner even though all she wanted to do was slam the door in his face and tell him to stick this 'weapon' idea up his buttocks. "Goodnight," Ginger was rushing the conversation in hope to read her letter and return to a relaxed state. Once Shaw finally left the doorway she entered her bedroom and then took out the thin piece of paper.

**Dear Ginger,**

**We all miss you too, even Eric. I know it must be challenging with Shaw but soon enough we'll be together again. We will see you again on Friday and finally rid the world of Shaw's evil presence. Then Raven will make a meal and we'll do some groovy dancing, I promise.**

**Love from the 'X-Men'**

She could only laugh at the humour he had involved by using the 'X-Men' even though at first all the gang seemed to do was deny being called such a preposterous name. Ginger knew this was written by Charles, only he could possess such a neat and majestic style of handwriting.

After memorising every word she did the safest thing she could and destroyed the piece of paper in a burst of flames. She rested her head on the cotton pillows and let out a smile, a real - happy - smile. Her mind set on that meal and that dance. No doubt Raven would concoct something equally as brilliant as it is delicious. And as for the dancing, Charles will probably pick out something classical. He would place his hand on her waist and the other would grip the red-heads own palm. They sway together and send each other an alluring grin. It would be the closest to perfect any one has ever gone; it was that moment that drove up her fighting spirit and created a whole new batch of hope. Suddenly she felt something heavy way down on her body, frantically she began to push what seemed to be a massive piece of rock off her body. Once she was finally released from the crumbling stone her eyes saw a grey sky, black clouds scouring the land and sending out lightning followed by a monstrous roar that echoed across the rocky terrain. The storm shocked Ginger, at first after the nuclear war all the weather seemed to do was go on a tirade of mass destruction; including fire storms, mudslides, hurricanes and most of all, lightning storms. Though by now they should have stopped and as a consequence Ginger hasn't seen this type of weather in years.

Once she was finally stood up she realized she was located in a familiar alleyway, one she had crossed often with Raven by her side. A smile came to her lips, a smile that couldn't help but be formed when she thought about the building that was just around the corner. Her legs seemed frozen however as she looked around and saw all the crumbled buildings, fire still remaining as an aftermath of whatever chaos was thrown across this city. In a sense of panic she began to run faster than she had ever before, running on pure fear of all her friends doom.

Once her eyes caught sight of the burnt down tower, her heart froze. She raced towards the collapsed structure of what was once her home-sweet-home. Half of the building was now scattered around the building, blocking most of the entrances. She found a hill made out of the pile of rocks that basically made a foot path to the second floor window. She was careful when climbing; knowing there was a chance the ground could collapse and that wouldn't make a great conclusion for her. The red-head jumps through the smashed window and landed in a pond of glass shards that instantly pushed in to her skin. Blood leaked from her palms, she gritted her teeth together to hold in the scream desperate to be released, and instead she yelled, "Hello?" Hoping that someone like Charles or Raven would come to assist her.

When she realized that no one would come to her rescue she instinctively began to pick out all the accessible pieces of glass, she then ripped off part of her t-shirt and began to wrap it around the inflicted area. The red-head began to climb up the staircase until she finally came to a memorable room.

This was the room where she had sat for hours waiting for Hank to wake up; of course she wasn't there for that exact moment when his Human eyes finally opened. The roof of said room was destroyed and now on the surrounding pavements, some rubble had collected around the room and made it rather painful to walk without any shoes on. The only source of warmth was the few dying flames that were also scattered with the remaining debris. "Ginger?" A rough voice called from a dusty chair, it was turned away from her so she was unable to know who it was.

At first her mind did suggest that the hidden person was in fact Eric, her first clue being the amount of alcoholic beverages that were now settled around the seat. Turns out her suspicions were wrong. A hand curled around the arm of the chair, a shaking body persevering to stand up. "Charles?" She couldn't believe her eyes, but as her green orbs assessed the untamed auburn locks that hid his face she realized it was indeed a drunken Charles. It was all so unreal at first; she knew that this person was Charles. Although it was like he was an empty vessel, it was like everything that made him Charles was missing from inside his body.

"It's all your fault!" He drunkenly yelled, using the hand that was keeping his standing and pointed an accusing finger at her. As a consequence of his swift movement he stumbled and was going to hit the ground if it wasn't for Ginger.

She was completely at a loss, what the hell was he on about? Her mind was stuck on the wellbeing of her dear friend and all her dear friend could do was reject her. "All you do is ruin things; I wish I left you to die on the day we met!" He scolded the girl on an unknowing crime she had obviously been a part of. "They're all dead, because. Of. You." He swayed as once again he rudely pointed a finger in her face.

Aggravated by the demeaning behaviour of Charles she slapped his hand and in an authoritative tone said, "What are you on about?"

To this he let out a malicious laugh, almost doubling over at the accusation she had just made. "As if you don't know!" He raised his arms as if to make his surprise even more apparent. "We all put our belief in you and then we all ended up dead!" Charles continued to let out the most bizarre laugh she had ever heard.

"Who is 'we'?" She interrogated further, he chose this time to finish off another bottle of vodka, letting another one of his laughs erupt through the room. His arm quickly rose, so fast that Ginger thought it was originally meant to hit her. Because she thought this she had thrown herself across the room. The red-head checked her surrounding areas to see she was now being surrounded by a large number of people. She managed to spot Charles among with Raven, Eric, Logan, Hank and even good-old Carlton.

"Me and your Mother cried the day you were born." She jumped up and turned around, almost collapsing in tears at what she saw. A man she knew as her Father was cuddling a ginger haired female that was crying on his shoulders. "We knew you would end up a failure! If it weren't for the nuclear attack we would have killed you ourselves!" The male sneered with haunting words.

"No." Ginger shook her head, trying to make believe their words were lies.

A hand clasped around her petite fingers, she saw that they were Charles' and the look on his face broke another piece of her heart. "Why are you such a failure?" The way he used his words weren't like the other times. He seemed desperate for an answer, like he was the heart-broken one. And it was all her fault.

"I-" She broke down, the pressure too powerful to push off her shoulders. "I don't know..."

This answer wasn't fulfilling enough and in seconds everyone was charging at her with violent disproving stares. Fists were thrown at all parts of her body with no patience; it seemed everyone was trying to get their own bit of revenge on her. Yells and screams of desperation left her mouth as she withered in to pain. Her body sat up and she once again found herself in the real world. She almost denied that thought, the past nightmare had felt so real.


	11. Chapter 11

The three figures enter the camp site, mentally preparing themselves for the battle that will be happening tomorrow. Charles sent the other two a reassuring smile. He didn't need to read their minds to know that this was out of their comfort zone; they were basically surrounded by violent Mutants running on a lust for blood. "Charles!" The burly voice of Wolverine became louder as he came closer, "welcome to the resistance."

Mutants surrounded numerous tents, some were chatting, some were eating dinner and some were making weapons. Charles had to go a sly check to see if they were all really part of the fight against evil, he checked every individuals mind and confirmed his suspicions that everyone was here with a deep hatred for Shaw. One mind seemed very familiar and at first Charles didn't believe it, he locked on to those individual brain waves and began on his trek. Eric and Raven followed swiftly, questioning his motives and receiving no answer.

"S-Sean." Raven was first to speak, surprised to see the ginger Mutant that had been absent from their team for so long.

Banshee looked up with a stunning smile, "oh hey guys, Logan told me you'd be showing up." Sean was acting neutral, but on the inside he was pretty much singing and dancing with glee. He hugged all of them merrily, this event being a good distraction from the horrors they were preparing for.

"So how's it been since we last saw you?" Charles questioned wanting to know what Banshee had been doing all this time. He then began to tell the tale of how he went off to become stronger as a fighter and then he found the resistance... and the love of his life.

"Stop being so soppy, ya' pansy." A Scottish female appeared beside him and looped her arm through Banshee's. "The names Jubilee, pleasure to meet ya!" Her smile lit up the whole field and even caused the gingers own smile to stretch. They all became acquainted, shaking hands and introducing themselves until Logan finally returned with a lit cigar between his lips.

"You guys better get ready, we'll be celebrating tonight." He spoke while letting out a puff of smoke, "will you show them to their room, Jubilee?"

She accepted the proposition and began to guide the group towards their own personal tents. Charles stalled the tour for a second as he wanted to know some valuable information. "Wait Logan, how is Ginger?" He had no shame in asking about the well-being of his dear friend. Raven and Eric had constantly teased the Telepath about his latest muse, all week he had his mind on whether the safety of his chalice was intact.

"You don't know," Logan felt a pang in his heart when he realized that he was uninformed on the _new_ Ginger. He realized the silence was making Charles even more anxious for the answer so Wolverine decided to just rip off the plaster. "She lost control of her power and ended up killing Frost, she was then placed in some kind of refraining dungeon..." the explanation made an aghast sigh escape his mouth, he genuinely didn't know how to feel. A mix of worry and rage fluttered inside his stomach. Seeing the panicked expression on his face, Logan quickly added, "but she's out now and at the moment I suspect she's having a nap."

He was trying to be sympathetic and the Telepath appreciated it. Charles decided it was best to keep to himself and so left to follow Jubilee to his own confided space, then he would be able to think.

They dropped off Eric first and then Raven, the tents really weren't anything special. They were basically just tall enough to fit in a bed and a desk, they looked like medieval sort of tents. The telekinetic male felt sort of relieved when he was left alone in the tent or at least he thought he was. "So who's the girl?" Jubilee acquired.

"What?" Charles turned around to see the black haired dame behind him with a curious look. He wanted to gush, tell this stranger everything he loved about Ginger and also everything that made him hate her, and just love her more. "She's just a girl." he decided on those words with the knowledge that so far everyone has bullied him for harnessing such feelings.

She walked further in to the room and placed herself on the bed, "that's not what it looks like." She was pushing for information; curiosity manipulating her judgement. "It looks like you for this wee chick, but ya' rather unsure"

Charles was surprised at the Mutant; it was unusual for him to talk about his feelings. Usually the only thing he talked about with Eric or Raven was the Earth's well-being. "Ginger is just a girl," he was so close to admitting, but decided for the truth to remain silent until he was positive.

"Is that all you care about?" Once again she received no reply. "All right I get it. But, just so you know, Banshe- sorry Sean. He meant nothing to me at first, then he came up to me after we just finished this battle and pulled out a cheesy line. Something like 'crazy huh? You like fighting, I like fighting too. Maybe we should get a bite some time and talk about it?' From then on he was the crazy weird person who I unwillingly fell in love with..."

The Telepath did feel kind of bad for ignoring her questions about his own heart after hearing about her past affairs. But, in fairness even he didn't know how he felt about the certain red-head. He knew he certainly enjoyed her company and he knew what sort of future he wanted for the both of them. After this extravaganza he wanted to look after her and shower her in riches, make her forget about the times when she had to beg for what she wanted. Instead he'd let her be a queen for a day, a single night without the haunting ghosts in the walls, instead that night would be her and him. Jubilee told him to think about it and he did and now he doesn't want to feel a thing anymore. He'd been through this phase of emotions before and had to harshly learn that the ting he loved would surly bring him pain. Her name was Moira McTaggert, the one flaw in their relationship was that she was Human and as a conclusion she did not survive the nuclear attack.

The celebration was approximately 45 minutes away; apparently they would be having a last evening of life seen as tomorrow they go to the final battle which decides the rulers. Every member of the resisters shall serenade the good in their life and live it up in one final night of joy. Logan had informed the X-Men and they decided they would join in on the fun. Charles thought they all deserved at least on night in the light. But to fully enjoy this moment, the Telepath needed reassurance from a certain partner-in-crime. He tried his best to locate their bunk, his memory skills not being what they used to be and the fact that when they were shown where the accommodations were located; Charles was in a completely different world. He took his time until he finally came across a recognisable red tent.

"Eric," he called and waited for him to appear.

"Ah Charles, I've been expecting you." And that statement was very true; the two-men know that this conversation was destined to happen. Eric had basically awaited this conversation in an agonizing slow speed.

"Hello, why do I have a feeling you already know what I want to talk about?" The Telepath placed himself leaning against the desk placed in the tent.

"Because you're that predictable Charles." The metal bender responded and took place on his bed. "And the answer will always be yes." He gave a simple answer and hoped that would be enough to finish this.

Charles had already second guessed the answer, but that didn't mean there was no hope of changing Eric's mind, "killing Shaw will not bring you peace."

Eric wanted to burst out laughing at Charles' quote. "Peace," he began, "was never an option." This was true and if people opened their eyes they would realize that such a meaningful serenity is basically impossible to achieve. There will always be a lurking darkness just waiting to pounce and force any light to succumb. Many people admit to embracing the darkness - Shaw being one of them - and all of those truly know fear. Those who stand in light are the ones waiting to be swallowed and destroyed. Eric thought of himself as a person in between, he fought for Mutants rights to be viewed as the higher class so they would be treated first class by the Humans. He also stood in the darkness; he knew true pain, the torturous depths that the darkness would g. He had been theoretically murdered by a slave of darkness and the only way to get as close to peace as possible, is to return such horror.

"But, Eric, we have it in us to be the better men." Charles supplied, still trying to change his pals mind. The Telepath was worried about what would follow their friendship if Eric went through with his malicious plan. Did he really have it in I'm to condone murder?

This was just another thing Eric wanted to laugh at, "we already are the better men." Eric was meant to continue with his speech on how murdering Shaw was the right thing to do and a side of Charles that wanted to see Shaw dead. There always is a malicious side to anyone; some just keep it under control better than others. There will always be a side to someone, a part of them that just wants to watch the world burn.

Raven entered just in time to disrupt whatever would have ensued. "You guys ready to go?" Her own excitement seemed to make her oblivious to the obvious tension that surrounded the room. The two men nodded while giving each other a look that said this conversation was over. Charles hoped Eric would change his mind and even though that happening was a very small chance - it was still a chance.

Once they left the tent and moved to the big field where the celebration would be taking place. The previous conversation had evaporated from their heads; instead they concentrated on the miraculous setting the resistance had made with only a few scraps. The field was overrun with tables stocked up with all kinds of foods and then a mini bar had been placed where you can order any drink - a paradise for an alcoholic. A band had begun playing a cheery tune that would get everyone dancing, but seen as it was early, many people were more in to getting drunk and stuffing their stomachs. This was their final night, why not do every sin possible?

In the middle was a camp fire surrounded by logs, the fire wouldn't be much use considering it was seconds away from another storm. Jubilee and Banshee were handing everyone a drink, as far as the guys knew they were just to drink. That thought soon changed when Logan stood in front of the fire with a scotch in his hand.

"So as you guys know I'm not one to make a speech," he began light-hearted, "but tomorrow we all might die, so I think it's time I did something different. There are many things we could toast too tonight: Our lives, our legacy, our good looks and charms. Instead I feel like we should toast to the person who is making this come true, right now there is a fragile broken girl who has seen the worst of this world. And I look up to that fucking woman, she has been pushed to the end and further, yet she still fights for the race that betrayed her and almost killed her for many years. So I toast to her, the girl with plenty of hope, the girl with many talents, and the girl with so much love. To Ginger!" He raised his glass in the air; his movement being copied by everyone, even Eric.

Wolverine's last words were screamed around the field. Charles just wished Ginger could see this, he always sensed that the talented female thought she was doing more wrong then good and he knew that this had a strain on her ability. Perhaps if she was this and finally relaxed, then maybe she could unlock a whole new side; if he had more time with her then he could have possible discovered what powers lie under her skin. Alas, there time together was short and as a consequence those secrets shall stay hidden until further notice.

Charles didn't notice when a hand suddenly pulled him away and in to the opening of the field, a blue creature stood in front of him while elegantly swaying and forcing Charles to sway. "Raven?" He questioned while sensing the troubled aura.

"I just wanted you to know," her voice was rather quiet and could hardly be heard over the background noise. "You'll always be my best friends, no matter how difficult you are." Her voice made it seem like she was joking, but she was very serious. The Telepath had given her so much, even though he frequently aggravated her, he was her saviour.

"You make it sound like this is the last time we'll talk together." He carried on with the joking form of chatter.

This had become a sort of shield for them both, the joking around momentarily distracts from the fact that the chances of ever achieving a gleeful possession is very small. "We might not." They both sighed and ended the conversation; continuing to prance around and drink away all their troubles. "Do you mind?" Raven interrupted the silence and nodded over his shoulder. He turned around and saw that Eric was waiting for his turn to dance with Raven, understanding this; he moved to the side and allowed the two to reunite.

For many years the resistance was stuck at the bottom, now with the celebration they all got that one night they deserved. Charles scanned the scene in front of him with a satisfied smile on his face.

Banshee and Jubilee were doing a tremendous job of terrible dancing, the song not matching their disco-like dance moves. Either way, the love in their eyes could warm any heart. Logan was already drunk and as a consequence was wildly jumping around and stumbling everywhere, yelling a number of mumbled profanities. Truly enjoying himself with no worry of his life.

This was their night to make the people on top, wish they were at the bottom.


End file.
